Two unrelated incidents that occurred in West Hartford in the past month have sparked concern, and a townwide discussion about hateful behavior and the Conard and Hall high school mascots.

By Ronni Newton

Two recent incidents in town have prompted West Hartford’s two public high schools and the West Hartford Board of Education to engage the community in a serious dialogue about tolerance.

Although all West Hartford public schools do annual climate surveys every year, and have strong policies in place against bullying and intolerance, singing of the “Dreidel Song” by some Conard students at a Conard vs. Hall boys soccer game held at Hall on Sept. 30, and a three-inch swastika drawn in green marker and discovered on the wall of a Hall classroom on Oct. 6, have ignited a response from some in the community who believe increased dialogue – and action – is needed to ensure that ethnic, religious, and racial intolerance has no place in the public schools.

The appropriateness of both schools mascots – the Hall warrior and the Conard chieftain – and Conard’s logo which in some renditions includes the face of a Native American chief – have also been brought into the discussion. Hall High School dropped its Indian logo in June 2012, following months of discussion with students and the community, but retained the warrior name.

Assistant Superintendent for Administration Andy Morrow sees discussion about the incidents, and the mascots, as “a really  important opportunity for our kids to study, learn, and share information.” He thinks it’s important for the dialogue at both high schools to be student-driven.

Conard students attended Tuesday night’s Board of Education meeting, and have apologized for the inappropriateness of their chanting at the soccer game. “They understand that the actions of some painted them in an unflattering light. They owned that and apologized. It’s not the image they want to have,” Morrow said.

Morrow said he does not have details about specific students who led the chanting, or who was responsible for the swastika. He said it is premature to voice an opinon about the mascots and logos because the schools are just at the beginning of what will be a student-driven process.

Conard High School has several different logos, including the “C” with a headdress that adorns this jacket. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

West Hartford Board of Education Chairman Bruce Putterman said Wednesday that the board will undertake an initiative with the community to evaluate whether or not the schools’ mascots are offensive. “Our intent as a board is to encourage students, and ultimately the community, to reflect on specific ways in which we may or may not be sensitive about whether or not we are offending groups of people,” Putterman said. The administration – principals at both high schools as well as the superintendent’s office – is also taking appropriate action within the schools, Putterman said.

Conard High School’s “superfan” student fan club – self-named “The Tribe” – is an official school club. Conard’s mascot is the “Chieftain” and The Tribe’s purpose, according to Conard’s website, is: “This club is for anyone interested in supporting and attending Conard Chieftain sporting events. At meetings we will discuss our next event, organize cheers, and coordinate attire. The focus is to unify the fan section to support Chieftain Athletics.”

Putterman said that personally, the club’s name, The Tribe, “sends a shiver up my spine.” The club’s name, along with mascots and logos, will all be part of the discussion, he said. “My job is to reflect the values of the community,” Putterman said. While this discussion is just getting started, Putterman said he expects to elicit opinions from the rest of the community through direct contact with the board as well as possibly meetings and a survey after receiving feedback from the schools. The schools will go through their own discussions, he said, and he expects the board to receive an update from the high schools in February or March.

Hall’s student fan club, self-named “The Reservation,” does not operate as an official school club.

Hall Principal Dan Zittoun said Thursday that he feels the school is already on the right path. “What we’re doing as a school overall is promoting a positive school culture.” Last week several students went to the State Capitol for a school climate symposium, and on Wednesday students and faculty from both Hall and Conard attended the Connecticut Youth Forum to participate in a discussion about racism.

“This is something we’ve already been doing,” Zittoun said.

However, he said that he and Conard Principal Julio Duarte are in the early stages of discussing a possible Hall-Conard summit, “maybe with a moderator, to discuss how we can make the West Hartford community stronger, and improve the culture and climate.”

“The message is that we’re doing this all together, both schools and central office are working on this together,” said Conard Principal Julio Duarte. “We want to address this head on.”

“We’re still having conversations,” Zittoun said, including reaching out to Gary Jones, director of the Connecticut Region of the Anti-Defamation League. “We want to demonstrate and cultivate a climate of respect for all students. All hateful behavior is unacceptable,” he said.

Conard senior Brendan Dakin, one of the leaders of The Tribe, said he personally was not part of the inappropriate chanting at the Conard vs. Hall soccer game, and didn’t even realize what was being said. “There has been tension back and forth, but there’s no animosity,” Dakin said. When the students are not on opposite sides of the field, they are friends who have grown up together. He said that members of The Tribe and The Reservation walked out of the Conard vs. Hall soccer game on Sept. 30 together.

Dakin said that the administration is “pointing us in the right direction” about the club’s cheers and use of the name. They are taking plenty of precautions to make sure chants are not inappropriate, he said.

“I think the Chieftain name is pretty generic, and I never thought of The Tribe as being racist or insensitive,” Dakin said. He said that club leaders have already began reaching out to Native Americans in the community to seek advice and achieve consensus.

“I had no idea this whole thing would come about. It’s kind of a like a domino effect that has become salient because of the whole [Washington] Redskins debate,” said Dakin.

Putterman said that the board hopes to make a decision about the logos and the mascots by the end of the school year. He said there is not clear policy on who gets to determine a school’s mascot, but believes the board has “the right to make policy” on a matter like this.

Dr. Yifrah Kaminer, a Hall parent who is also a psychiatrist and professor at UConn, doesn’t think West Hartford Public Schools are doing enough to not only eliminate intolerance, but also get to the root of the history and why it exists. According to Kaminer, reliable and accurate sources who were at the Conard vs. Hall soccer game told him that the chants not only included the “Dreidel Song,” which he found inappropriate, but also included the very toxic chant of words like: “You don’t need no reservation, you just need some concentration.”

A parent of a King Philip Middle School student who was at the game also told Kaminer that an older kid – he doesn’t know if the student was from Conard or Hall – taunted some younger students, hitting them on the head and calling them “Jew boys,” Kaminer said.

Kaminer said that reaction needs to go beyond just teaching, “Why can’t we all be friends?” but rather requires a change in curriculum. “We need to understand what makes people tick.”

“I think this justifies a Town Hall meeting in West Hartford, not just to get comfortable but to have an action plan,” Kaminer said.

Both Conard and Hall “superfan” cheering groups have attracted large crowds to boys soccer games. The Conard and Hall boys soccer teams will meet on Thursday, Oct. 23, at 6 p.m. at Conard’s McKee Stadium. Morrow said he expects the student cheering groups “to be spectacular.”

“They have an opportunity coming up to show that they can act in the way they want to be perceived,” Morrow said.

“I certainly hope we’ll be there in strength, and I hope we regain that energy,” Dakin said.

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