Thread by @CarmenKohlruss

Hundreds of places have removed ‘squaw’ from name. Why not the town in #Fresno County?

The latest about federal, state and local efforts to change Squaw Valley's name ⬇️
fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

And thanks @smartnews for helping to share this! Love it when stories like this get read widely thanks to help from the digital age. fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

Related: Love that an email from @palisadestahoe @PalisadesPR popped in about their name change journey as I was talking about it with my husband. (Psychic ski peeps?)

I included their outreach efforts in the Lake Tahoe area in a story I did last year: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

Part of today’s @FresnoBee story covers an ongoing quest to get a public meeting about Squaw Valley: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

@melissamyrna_ wrote about Roman Rain Tree being removed from a Board of Supervisors meeting in November for turning his back: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

Aside from supervisors taking action (they haven’t), the only public building where a meeting could be held in the small town of Squaw Valley is an activity center connected to a @FCPL library branch. Rain Tree said his requests to reserve it were denied. fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

But at this juncture - with federal, state and local forces now at work to change the town’s name - Rain Tree sees it as Supervisor Magsig’s responsibility to lead a meeting about the issue. fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

AB 2022 will likely change the town's name.

The bill - authored by @AsmJamesRamos + many coauthors, including @drarambulaAD31 of #Fresno -passed last month & awaits Gov. @GavinNewsom's signature.

@melissamyrna_'s story about the bill's introduction: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

There's also a federal review underway regarding the town's name, led by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names + @Interior + @SecDebHaaland.

Here's other places they renamed last week in the Sierra foothills + mountains above the central San Joaquin Valley: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

The @Interior has since shared a couple of their translations with me, included in today’s follow-up story: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

Paiute Woman Lake ❤️
Rock Water Lake ❤️

It’s important to remember how “squaw” is connected to the genocide committed against Native Americans in #California.

@FresnoBee story: fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

If you’d like to learn more about the town of Squaw Valley in Fresno County, CA, the beginnings of the local campaign to change its name, the normal name change process, and reactions from residents, here’s a very deep dive about that from last year ⬇️ fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

The story in today's @FresnoBee print edition, 9/15.

Hundreds of places have removed ‘squaw’ from name. Why not the town in #Fresno County? fresnobee.com/news/local/art…

. @gregrthomas at @sfchronicle has also been writing about this. From his most recent story:

"We have been butting heads and getting nowhere" with #Fresno County lawmakers, Rain Tree said. "Now all of a sudden the issue has gotten a lot more attention."
sfchronicle.com/travel/article…

And here's a quick overview of U.S. name changes via @dvaughnsmith @sacbee_news, also noting how @palisadestahoe decided in 2020 to change the name of its ski resort in the Lake Tahoe area after doing research and outreach of its own with tribes. fresnobee.com/news/californi…