Con: Federal government’s renaming of Squaw Valley was done without local residents’ views

Editor’s note: This is part of a point-counterpoint on the renaming of Squaw Valley to Yokuts Valley. The opposing view can be found here.

In the 1950s, two Squaw Valley communities (near Lake Tahoe and in Fresno County) fought for the right to be recognized as the original. Through the efforts of Congressman B.F. Sisk and residents of Squaw Valley in Fresno County, the U.S. Department of the Interior recognized Fresno County to be the home of the original Squaw Valley name. One Native American woman, born in the 1850s, stated to the local paper that Squaw Valley received its name long before settlers came to that region.

Does the history of our land matter when making decisions? Should the will of the local community be considered?

The current secretary of the Department of Interior, a federally appointed, nonelected position, decreed that all names of geographical regions, landmarks, and even populated communities that she deemed offensive would be erased from all maps and documents permitted by the federal government. Included in the decree was the decision to replace the word “squaw.”

The residents of Squaw Valley were never notified by a representative of the DOI by letter, email, or in person on what changes were planned for their community. The DOI did not hold community or town hall meetings with the residents of Squaw Valley to hear their perspectives or even solicit alternative names.

In order to give the residents a voice, Fresno County held a community meeting, then sent out a poll and the residents returned 635 ballots out of a total of 1,432 mailed. Of them, 87% were opposed to any name change. They also indicated a preference for the names Bear Mountain, Dunlap or Bear Valley if a name change had to happen without their input. The results of the poll and all of this information was sent to the DOI and Board of Geographical Names (BGN).

Months later, the residents learned that Squaw Valley was changed to Yokuts Valley. The DOI never informed the residents of the name change, but they learned about it from third parties only: their elected county supervisor and the media.

Through the action of one unelected government official and her office, Squaw Valley was renamed Yokuts Valley. The word “squaw” was deemed offensive to the secretary and we’re to assume that “yokuts” is not offensive to anyone.

So, who chose the name “Yokuts Valley”? By the DOI’s own admission, no one from Squaw Valley was part of the renaming process. The DOI reached out to the Fresno branch of Women’s International League of Peace and Freedom, residents for Renaming SquawValley/change.org petition (with many signatures from outside of Squaw Valley), ACLU Northern CA, and the California Advisory Committee of Geographic Names. They all supported renaming Squaw Valley.

I guarantee 99% of Californians, let alone the Squaw Valley community, never heard of these groups nor could ascertain what they do. The DOI only listed the County of Fresno and four individuals, who submitted opposition letters, as those who were opposed. There was no mention of the 635 ballots sent by the residents of Squaw Valley or their preferences for alternative names.

It appears the DOI made a concrete decision at the beginning of the process and any outreach to Squaw Valley community would be a waste of federal time and resources.

I’m amazed how quickly government moves when it has an agenda. It has been 18 months since the DOI announced the term “squaw” offensive and its intention to strike the term from all places across the United States. Despite limited to no public outreach (none in Fresno County), hundreds of lakes, mountains and basins across the nation were identified and have been renamed.

A name change is just the beginning. When making unilateral decisions without the voices and input from its taxpayers, the government not only divides us, but also chips away at our democracy.

Nathan Magsig is the Fresno County supervisor representing District 5, which includes Yokuts Valley.