Defiant Long Islanders embrace Chiefs, Warriors mascots as NY state threatens to pull funding over ‘offensive’ team names

They’re showing their fighting spirit.

Two Long Island communities are embracing their schools’ Native American-themed team names and history despite a woke mandate – and residents say it’s ridiculous that holding onto tradition may mean losing state aid.

The Massapequa Chiefs and Wantagh Warriors have no plans to change their names or imagery by a government-mandated June deadline as locals in the Nassau County hamlets are defiantly wearing team gear and refusing to bow to what they call a tone-deaf attempt at “cancel culture.”

“It’s just about erasing history… that’s the problem with cancel culture,” Matt Susco, president of the Wantagh Museum and Wantagh Preservation Society, told The Post. “I can’t believe that it’s actually coming into our hometown and going into the classrooms. How do you explain this to an 8- or 9-year-old?”

The two Native American-named towns, which are fighting the forthcoming ban tooth-and-nail in court, are among 13 school districts being forced to change their traditional names after funding threats from the New York State Board of Regents in April 2023.

Prideful Long Islanders find there’s nothing offensive about the names and imagery and say they honor an epic legacy unique to their shores.

Al Iaquinta, a former UFC star turned Wantagh-based realtor, said it’s “infuriating” to think about ditching the warrior way at his alma mater.

“It makes no sense,” Iaquinta, a former multisport athlete at Wantagh High School, told The Post.

“That’s what is so cool about Long Island — that it has this history.”

Susco, 46, said Wantagh’s logo shows Chief Wantagh, a Sachem leader who settled the region in the mid-1600s. He reiterated that the mascot’s face is historically accurate.

“It’s identical to the actual portrait we have in the museum… to say that’s offensive is incorrect,” said Susco, who graduated from Wantagh High School in 1996 and proudly sports a Warriors tattoo.

State Sen. Steven Rhoads is also adamant about preserving the Wantagh legacy in his district. This month, he introduced two bills to exempt Wantagh schools from the ban and help protect other districts that do not comply.

“It’s a part of who we are, and it’s a celebration of our heritage,” said Rhoads, a Wantagh grad.

He called it “a shame” that the state education department “simply wants to stamp out” local legacy rather than use it as a teachable moment.

In Suffolk County, the Wyandanch and Connetquot school districts — also named in honor of their Native American roots — have lawsuits of their own to keep their respective titles of the Warriors and Thunderbirds, abbreviated to “T-Birds,” Newsday reported.

‘Once a chief, always a chief’

Just a few miles east of Wantagh in Massapequa, parents are also outraged that the phrase “chief” has come under scrutiny. Joe Diesso, a 52-year-old father, said it’s hypocritical that the term is acceptable when used to describe the US president, a CEO or a high-ranking law enforcement or fire official.

“Why is that all OK, but not when we use the word?” Diesso told The Post. The father of three said his kids are also upset by the double standard.

“They wouldn’t want to be anything else but a chief.”

Through the years, respect was always given toward the team name and logo of a Native American in a feathered headdress, according to Gary Baldinger, a Massapequa High alum who played in the National Football League in the 1980s and early 1990s.

“I would say 99.9% of locals have been positive about keeping the name,” Baldinger, a longtime Massapequa School Board trustee until 2021, said.

Baldinger, who spent time with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, said he’s doubly annoyed the state would harp on “such a trivial matter … with all the problems with kids’ education throughout our country.”

“We’re going to continue to fight,” Baldinger said. “It really represents not just a school and a sports team, but who we are. I can’t imagine another name.”

Diesso pointed out that a name change would be ridiculous, given the numerous closeby nods to Native American culture.

Massapequa has a towering statue of a Native American chief five minutes away from the high school.

Students also paint a chief-themed mural almost yearly on a wall adjacent to campus.

Since the 2023 threat, Diesso said he has also noticed many more residents wearing Massapequa gear, especially apparel bearing the phrase “Once a Chief, Always a Chief.”

“This will never go away in Massapequa. No matter what happens,” Diesso said.