Famed Tahoe ski resort Squaw Valley sheds ‘derogatory’ name

Calling it “the close happening to do,” Lake Tahoe’s legendary Squaw Valley skis edifice connected Monday announced it is dropping the “derogatory” sanction it’s held since 1949 successful favour of a caller one: Palisades Tahoe.

The owners of the resort, which hosted the 1960 Winter Olympics, adopted the caller sanction aft a year’s worthy of consultation with the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California.

Serrell Smokey, president of the Washoe Tribal Council, expressed “great appreciation for this affirmative measurement forward.”

“The Washoe People person lived successful the country for thousands of years; we person large reverence for our ancestors, past and lands,” helium told Reno’s News4. “We are precise pleased with this decision; contiguous is simply a time that galore person worked towards for decades.”

The caller sanction volition besides encompass the company’s sister property, Alpine Meadows.

“At the extremity of the day, ‘squaw’ is simply a hurtful word, and we are not hurtful people,” Dee Byrne, the president and COO of the resort, said successful a statement. “It was a alteration that needed to beryllium made for america to proceed to clasp our heads precocious arsenic a person successful our manufacture and community. We person a well-earned estimation arsenic a progressive edifice astatine the forefront of skis culture, and advancement can’t hap without change.”

Palisades Tahoe joins a increasing database of entities dropping indigenous names that are considered offensive. The Washington Redskins became the Washington Football Team. The Cleveland Indians rebranded themselves arsenic the Cleveland Guardians, though the squad whitethorn find itself successful a trademark warfare implicit that name. Nearly 50 years earlier, Stanford University dropped its mascot sanction and image, becoming the archetypal instauration successful the state to marque specified a move, according to Indian Country Today, a integer indigenous quality service.

Rebranding volition statesman immediately, edifice officials said, but afloat adoption of “Palisades Tahoe” is expected to beryllium a years-long process. On the Olympic Valley side, the basal country colony volition present beryllium known arsenic The Village astatine Palisades Tahoe, but caller names for the Squaw One and Squaw Creek chairlifts person yet to beryllium determined. Those changes volition beryllium made successful collaboration with the Washoe tribe, with nationalist input sought.

With the caller sanction comes a caller eagle’s caput logo. According to the resort, “the majestic eagle acceptable supra 2 towering peaks signifies the self-determination and individuality that has defined generations of radical who called these mountains home.”