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Roudabush: Meskwaki not offended by county’s logo
MONTEZUMA — The Meskwaki people are not offended by Poweshiek County’s depiction of Native Americans, a resident and county supervisors said Monday.
About a dozen Poweshiek County residents showed up May 6 for a public discussion with the board of supervisors about the county’s logo.
John Clayton, who intends to run for county supervisor as an Independent in November, asked the county to stop using logos with images of Native Americans, saying they are racist, offensive and detrimental to the mental health of Native Americans according to the American Psychological Association.
Clayton is not asking that the county change its name, only that it stop using the images it’s using.
Rather than addressing their comments to supervisors, residents questioned Clayton. Some scoffed at Clayton’s comments and two walked out in disgust before the discussion ended.
Jacki Bolen, a Republican candidate for Poweshiek County supervisor, asked Clayton if he’d spoken with the Meskwaki Tribe, which settled in Tama in 1856 after being pushed out of the state earlier.
Clayton said he talked to someone from the tribe who informed him that the logo is not Poweshiek and wanted the logo changed. The person is opposed to the image of any person being used in a logo.
County Supervisor Jason Roudabush said he went to the Meskwaki settlement a couple of times after Clayton brought up the issue in April, and no Meskwaki he talked to said the image needs to be changed.
They don’t care that the image isn’t an accurate picture of Poweshiek, Roudabush said.
The Meskwaki Roudabush talked to said the logo isn’t racist, Roudabush said, and the Meskwaki Tribal Council is taking a neutral stance on the issue.
Roudabush said that one Meskwaki told him that people bring up racism, but they don’t really know what racism is.
Roudabush noted that the County doesn’t have a single Indian logo. Several are in use, and none are trademarked.
And the logo wasn’t meant to be an accurate picture of Poweshiek, said Roudabush. “It’s an artist’s rendition of an Indian.”
Roudabush also disputed whether the only known photograph of Poweshiek is accurate. Artists make their own renditions, he said. Poweshiek’s son was photographed in a full headdress.
(The State Historical Society of Iowa owns the copyright to the book “Annals of Iowa” which shows a photo of James and Jonas, Poweshiek’s son and grandson, in full headdress.)
The headdress is not Meskwaki, according to Clayton. It’s use in the county logo is one reason he objects to the logo.
Clayton explained that the grandson attended a non-Indian school, became a Mormon and was paid to wear the headdress.
Roudabush said his point is still valid: the Native Americans weren’t offended by it.
Each artist has a different way of depicting the image, said Roudabush. Often artists would have Native Americans dress in a particular way to make them appear more native, he said.
The images aren’t necessarily accurate.
One resident asked Clayton why he’s bringing up the subject at all. “Where did this come from?”
“It’s just being sensitive to other cultures,” said Clayton, a retired social science teacher. “The image struck me as not being appropriate for a long time.”
Clayton said people have told him that the logo needs to be changed. “They realize that it’s derogatory to Chief Poweshiek.”
Clayton is ignoring history in assuming racism, said Randy Johnson. The reason the county was named Poweshiek was in honor of the Native American’s leadership.
But Clayton said racism is historical. It was rampant in the 1920s when the Ku Klux Klan was prevalent in Iowa.
Cori Henkle said that Clayton isn’t considering the time and money the county would spend changing the logo.
Some changes would be inexpensive and immediate, said Clayton, such as removing the logo from the website. Other logos, such as the ones on city vehicles, would be phased out as they wear out.
Mike Edgington said his biggest problem was that Clayton was throwing around the word racism and racist. “That’s not the way to go about it,” Edgington said.
Clayton admitted that the term rubs people the wrong way.
“Where is it going to stop?” Edgington asked. The Poweshiek County Freedom Rock also has an image representing Poweshiek, Edgington said.
The images signify that people are proud of Poweshiek, Edgington said. “I’m sick of the cancel culture.”
Supervisor Chairman Diana Dawley said that years ago the school district asked the Meskwaki tribe about having a cheerleader for the Montzuma Braves wear a headdress, and the tribe had no problem with it.
The school district asked for and received a letter approving it, Dawley said.
“This is much ado about nothing,” Dawley said. The board of supervisors has important things to do.
Dawley said she’s proud of Poweshiek and of Poweshiek County.
The Meskwaki Tribe is a very strong tribe, said Bolen. The tribe could have asked the county to change the logo but they’ve never done that, so it may not bean issue with them.
The Meskwaki are the ones who count, said Bolen, “Not any of us in here.”
Clayton thanked the supervisors for their time and thanked residents several times for showing up for the discussion.
Clayton said he’s not surprised that residents are pushing back. “It’s an evolution in sensitivity,” he said.
Removing derogatory images of Native Americans nationwide has taken time, Clayton said. “People have to reflect on it and think about it,” he said.
