‘Offensive’ names in Fresno? These places landed on the federal government’s list
The U.S. Geological Survey published a list of more than 600 places around the nation that use the term “squaw” in their name — including about half a dozen places in Fresno County — in connection with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland’s formal declaration last Friday that the word is a derogatory term.
Native Americans across the country and locally have said that the term is an offensive slur against Native American women.
For over a year, local area activists, led by Roman Rain Tree, a member of the local area Dunlap Band of Mono and Choinumni tribes, have come together to ask Supervisor Nathan Magsig to consider changing the name of Squaw Valley.
The census designated place in eastern Fresno County is home to over 3,500 residents, some of whom came out to support the name change during a “Change S Valley” rally held in downtown Fresno last week.
But it’s not the only Fresno area place to bear the offensive name.
A number of Fresno County places could see name changes.
Six local places are on federal name list
In response to Haaland’s announcement, the U.S. Geological Survey produced a list of all official feature names that include the word “Squaw,” that could be impacted by the secretarial order. Here’s what’s on the list in Fresno County:
- Squaw Valley Basin
- Old Squaw Lake
- Squaw Lake
- Squaw Leap Cliff
- Squaw Valley Populated Place
- Squaw Valley Census Designated Place
The USGS pointed out that a a small number of names on the list are outside the purview of the U.S. Bureau on Geographic Names, or BGN, but they were included on the list because they “are considered official for Federal use.”
These Fresno-area places are just a few of the more than 600 places that use the term in their official name across the country, 86 of which are found in California.
Earlier this year, an official with the BGN told The Bee that proposals with requests to change names with the term “squaw” in them was a “constant request” over the past 15 to 20 years.
In Auberry, a census designated place in eastern Fresno County, the Bureau of Land Management’s Squaw Leap Management Area was renamed in 2003 to the San Joaquin River Gorge Management Area. However, this was an administrative and cultural name change not under BGN’s purview. The name of the physical feature, the cliff, officially remains Squaw Leap.
Local activist responds to name change announcement
“The creation of a federal task force to address this issue is a signal that the federal process has begun to scrub it from the use of American geographic naming,” said Rain Tree in a statement to The Bee on Sunday.
“If the pending congressional legislation is successful, then we will ultimately see come into fruition exactly what we have been asking from Supervisor (Nathan) Magsig and the (Fresno County) Board of Supervisors, since the beginning of our journey to rename our community: An earnest, respectful, and inclusive community discussion regarding the renaming of S-Valley Fresno County.”
Rain Tree said it was unclear if the announcement would impact the local census designated unincorporated community, but that the coalition “remain(s) positive and hopeful that change is imminent.”
“In the long term, it is a giant leap forward,” said Rain Tree.
This story was originally published November 25, 2021 at 10:00 AM.
