Q: I read recently that the mascot and logo of the Red Mesa High School on the Navajo reservation in Arizona is the Redskins. Is there any truth to this or is it urban legend?
—John Watkins, Cartersville
A: Redskins is the nickname and mascot of Red Mesa High School, which is in a remote area of the Navajo Reservation in northeastern Arizona. The school was 99.3 percent Native American in 2013 and was one of three high schools in the country that have a Native American student majority and Redskins as a nickname.
Wellpinit High School (91.2 percent) in Wellpinit, Wash., and Kingston High School (57.7 percent) in Kingston, Okla., are the others, according to a Capital News Service article from April 2013. “Education, public health ‒ those are the things we’re more concerned about, rather than whether a team name is appropriate,” Superintendent Tommie Yazzie told the Maryland-based news organization. “If you were to put this in an urban area where the population is basically white, unless there is a cultural connection, it would be inappropriate.”
There’s a campaign to change the name of the NFL’s Washington Redskins.
Q: Why isn’t the College Football Hall of Fame open in the evenings?
—Mike Cooper, Atlanta
A: The College Hall of Fame, which opened in downtown Atlanta on Aug. 23, is available for private events and venue rentals in the evenings. Its regular hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday. "These are typical hours for a metro Atlanta attraction," a spokesman told Q&A on the News in an email.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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