Five unincorporated populated areas in the United States that used the word “squaw,” which is considered a derogatory term toward Native American women, have had their names changed.
Renaming the sites—located in California, North Dakota, Tennessee, and Texas—completes a years-long process to remove the word from geographic sites across the country.
The U.S. Department of the Interior announced the move last week, which comes after the Department’s Board on Geographic Names (BGN) voted to remove the names of 650 other assets last September.
“Words matter, particularly in our work to ensure our nation’s public lands and waters are accessible and welcoming to people of all backgrounds,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “I am grateful to the members of the Derogatory Geographic Names Task Force and the Board on Geographic Names for their efforts to finalize the removal of this harmful word. Together, we are showing why representation matters and charting a path for an inclusive America.”…