http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x1878563298/Professor-Redmen-name-co
uld-bring-law-suits

Professor: Redmen name could bring law suits

By Charlie Breitrose/Daily News staff
The MetroWest Daily News

Posted May 27, 2008 @ 11:33 PM

NATICK — The School Committee could be legally vulnerable if it decides to
keep the Redmen sports nickname, according to an alternate legal analysis.

Michael Siegel, a town resident and Boston University professor, said he
examined various sections of federal and state law and arrived at a
different conclusion from that of Murphy, Hesse, Toomey and Lehane, the law
firm hired by the School Committee to examine the issue.

"It's not so much that (the analysis) is in conflict, but there are some
areas of law not included that could be a strong area of argument if a
lawsuit is brought," Siegel said.

Siegel does not practice law, but he studies public policy with BU's School
of Public Health and said he has experience examining legal and legislative
issues. He sent his analysis to members of the School Committee.

The legal analysis by the district's lawyers focused on Title IX and Title
VI of the federal Civil Rights Act, but Siegel believes the schools could
be vulnerable under Title II.

The difference, he said, lies in who must bring the lawsuit forward. In
Title II a group can bring suit, rather than an individual associated with
the school.

"It is not so much discrimination against an individual student, but
accommodation in a public venue," Siegel said, citing a 1999 Harvard Law
Review article titled, "A Public Accommodations Challenge to the Use of
Indian Team Names and Mascots in Professional Sports."

Siegel noted that the name Redmen appears in a few places at the NHS
football field, including on the scoreboard and the pressbox. If someone
attending a game, whether a student, a resident or someone else, is
offended by the use of the name that could be considered discrimination
under Title II.

"It is not only about letting people in, but preventing people from
participating fully in an event," Siegel said. "If people do not want to
participate, if it dissuades them from attending, they may have basis for
filing a federal lawsuit."

State law could also be the basis for a suit, Siegel said, for similar
reasons as Title II. The statute guarantees not only access but enjoyment
of an event at a public "accommodation," which includes a sporting event.

In a similar case in a neighboring state, a restaurant called Sambo's was
sued by a group that believed the name was offensive.

"At a restaurant in Rhode Island the name was offensive to some
African-Americans and the court agreed and they had to change the name,"
Siegel said. "The intent (of offending someone) is not important. If people
are offended they are offended, it doesn't matter if people meant to offend
them."

The legal analysis provided by the School Committee's firm stresses that no
successful suits have been filed over use of American Indian nicknames.
That may not be so significant, Siegel said.

"It is a bit misleading to say it is low risk (to use Redmen) because there
have not been any successful suits," Siegel said. "It's not like there is a
long list of failed challenges, either."

Siegel likened it to another area in which he has been involved suits over
the danger of tobacco use.

"Prior to 2000, there had never been a successful suit against the tobacco
industry," Siegel said. "Things can change overnight."

Siegel also anticipates that if the School Committee goes with the Redmen
name it will not put the issue to bed.

"It's not going to go away," Siegel said. "History has shown when people's
rights are being violated, and the decision goes against them, they're not
going to stop. They're going to come back again and again.

"When African-Americans' rights were violated, they did not give up. They
kept on fighting. They are still fighting."

(Charlie Breitrose can be reached at 508-626-3964 or cbreitro@....)