By LESTER CHANG
Fremont High School has chosen a new mascot to replace the Indian that offended some students and Native Americans.
On Feb. 28 and 29, 1,437 students and staff members voted to replace the Indian with a firebird, which will take the form of a phoenix--the ancient mythical bird that set itself on fire, then arose from the ashes to live another long life.
Students chose the firebird from among several possible mascots, including the cardinal, the jaguar and el lobo (wolf in Spanish).
Peggy Raun-Linde, Fremont's vice principal, announced the selection at the March 5 meeting of Fremont Union High School District's board of trustees.
Last May, several individuals complained to trustees that the mascot was demeaning and insulting to their culture.
The board voted last November to retire the logo at the end of the school year.
The logo is prominently painted on the wall of the school gym that faces Sunnyvale-Saratoga Road, a main thoroughfare. The new logo will be painted after June, at which time students and school teams will be known as the Fremont Firebirds, school officials said.
In April, students will vote on drawings depicting the new mascot.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, March 13, 1996.
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