Exclusive | Blakeman taunts Hochul with Massapequa Chiefs name as high schoolers troll NYS logo ban

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman taunted Gov.Kathy Hochul over her administration’s fight to cancel the Massapequa Chiefs team name – as high school seniors trolled the Empire State’s ban on Native American imagery.Blakeman promised to protect the name chiefs in the face of a state ban on Native American imagery as he visited the Massapequa High School merch stand during the Long Island school’s football team game against Garden City at Hofstra University on Monday.“Hey Kathy Hochul, you see what this says? It says Chiefs,” Blakeman said, holding up a Massapequa sweatshirt for a Post reporter shooting video of the callout.“Once a Chief, always a Chief.

You tried to take that away from Massapequa – no way,” added the Republican, who is now serving as the Nassau County executive.High school seniors have also joined in on trolling the Empire State over its ban, with defiant Class of 2027 T-shirts that include a Chiefs logo and the phrase “2till 7he Chiefs!”Massapequa has been fighting the Hochul administration since a 2023 Board of Regents mandate forced state public schools to ditch Native American names and imagery or face cuts in funding. The Massapequa Union Free School District estimates rebranding its sports teams would cost about $1 million – while school officials argue that the team name “chiefs” is an innocuous term used in courts, firehouses and police stations — and even within New York State government.The legal battle has sparked the community, drawn the attention of President Trump and inspired students to paint a massive “Once A Chief Always A Chief” mural on a wall adjacent to campus.“One year they thought they were the last of the Chiefs, and I think it was just throwing back to, well, we’re still the Chiefs,” said Massapequa Board of Education President Kerry Wachter, who also attended the game.“They are not willing to give up their identity, their history, who we are.It’s just as much t...