Should the ‘R-word’ be banned on attire at schools? One parent thinks so

When Jared Hautamaki brought his 5-year-old son to school in Silver Spring, Md., he immediately noticed that the school’s principal wore a burgundy­-and-gold polo shirt bearing the name and logo of Washington’s National Football League team, the Redskins.

“As a native parent, that’s really, really offensive,” Hautamaki recalls telling the leader of Highland Elementary School in Montgomery County.

Hautamaki has since testified before the county school board, started a petition drive and stirred community debate about what constitutes offensive attire at school. He is calling on county school officials to ban students and staff in the district from wearing clothing with the name or logo of sports teams with Native American mascots, including Washington’s NFL team.

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