"Squaw"king over a peak

Arizona has a budget crisis. One-sixth of its population is registered for its free health care program. Illegal immigrants inundate its emergency rooms and congregate in clumps along streets and sidewalks, untouchable by law enforcement officials immersed in cultural sensitivity training and harassed as defendants in profiling lawsuits.

But, Gov. Janet Napolitano is a woman of action. Responding to the fiscal and social crises, she did what any chief executive would. She convened an emergency meeting of the Arizona State Board of Geographic and Historic Names. The Gov asked that the offensive name of Squaw Peak, a Phoenix mountain, and its nearby Squaw Peak Parkway, be changed to Piestewa Peak and Piestewa Parkway, respectively. Double-takes at the signage and stuttering pronunciations among traffic helicopter jocks should do wonders for traffic flow.

Army Pfc. Lori Ann Piestewa, a Hopi and mother of two young children, was killed in the war in Iraq, thus becoming the first Native American woman to die in combat (although her mother's maiden name is Baca and she is from Mexico). The Gov wanted "squaw" out and female, particularly voting-block female, glory, laud and honor in. As the Board met to bestow honors on Piestewa, the family of Lance Cpl. Michael Williams, who also died in battle in Iraq, quietly laid their fallen son to rest. Arizona launched the nation's first affirmative action program for naming landmarks.

Like all affirmative action programs, the Board's name change ran roughshod over law and policies. Both the U.S. Board of Geographic Names and state boards require that changes in honor of a person be proposed AFTER the person has been deceased for 5 years. To stop heat-of-emotion naming, these boards have, for 100 years, adhered to the five-year wait. Even Barry Goldwater's ghost had to sit it out until we named just about everything after him. The new AA Piestewa standard is about thirty-two days.

When the chairman of the state board, Tim Norton, reappointed in January by Gov. Napolitano for another five-year term, pointed out the five-year rule to his demanding governor, she suggested that he resign. He didn't, but he also didn't go to the meeting. Richard Pinkerton, a member of the board for 19 years resigned prior to the meeting. A portion of his letter read, "[t]here have been implied threats from within the board's membership that I should sacrifice and prostitute my integrity in the interest of satisfying a particular political leaning."

With Pinkerton out, and the chairman not in attendance, there remained only the sycophants of state government, trembling in their French Shriners. One public member of the Board, and the representative from the Arizona Historical Society, my friend, Lloyd Clark, weathered the meeting and rose to defend the rule of law. A near-octogenarian, this life-long fan of Casa Blanca knows more about Arizona names, sites and history than the Gila monsters. He has a love of everything Arizona from Penny's Pies at the Rock Springs Café to the true origins of the name of Bumble Bee, Arizona.

Lloyd asked the same questions he would ask at any hearing. To the mayor of Phoenix, "Did the city council approve this?" Nope. To a member of the county board of supervisors, "Did the board endorse this?" Nope. To the head of the Arizona Department of Transportation, "Did your board approve this?" Nope, but they'll ratify it at the next meeting. The usual suspects were rounded up, but had nothing to offer. They came without endorsements.

The five-year waiting period and approval requirements from all affected government agencies and units are wise restraints. Emotion takes a break. Consensus builds. If you don't think waiting to name things is a good plan, talk to the folks at Seton Hall University. They've got one building named after Dennis Kozlowski, the indicted former CEO of Tyco, and another building named after Tyco board member, Frank Walsh, who entered a felony guilty plea. Name in haste; repent for five to ten years, depending on the federal sentencing guidelines.

Democrats have a lot of the Jesse Jackson/Al Sharpton paparazzi blood in them. They cannot resist a media blitz designed to gain votes via help for the downtrodden. In the Democrat minds of Janet Napolitano and others, all minorities are downtrodden. All minorities need exceptions to the rules to attain results. The sheer condescension nauseates.

This hasty action derogates the memory of Pfc. Piestewa. As a soldier in a company, she would take offense at being singled out for glory. As a soldier in the U.S. Army, she would protest the disregard of rules. As a patriot she would note that she gave her life in a battle against imperialism in Iraq only to be "honored" by imperialists who wave the rules and impose their will on the people. What an unfitting tribute to an honorable soldier.

Political correctness and fear of accusations of racism have not allowed us to remember that she was, first and foremost, a soldier with their values, their honor, and, most importantly, their rules. Forgive them, Lori Ann, their abrogation of duty lost sight of what you stood for. Five years from now, they would have seen all of this and honored you forthrightly. Emotion got in the way. That and an imperialist governor with obsequious servants at her footstool.

1) Squaw doesn't mean genitalia.

2) It isn't a word used to insult people.

I've heard of people being called stupid bitch, stupid nigger, stupid pollack, stupid wetback, stupid mick, or stupid injun, but I've NEVER heard of anyone being called a "squaw" except in old western movies, and then it was just meant to connote an Indian woman.

Can you show one piece of historical usage of Squaw as an epithet? I've never seen one. I think this is another made up "fact."

Nevermind that everyone will still refers to it as Squaw peak.

Down with Empress Napolitano!

Sorry, I'm a conservative. I'm also an Indian. "Squaw" is a word that means female genitalia and has been such a source of humiliation in the Indian people for years.

Altough the "female genitalia" story is an urban legend, the fact that 'squaw' is an Algonquin word without meaning in any of our local languages has made this mountain a good target for renaming for many years. I'm one of the people who has has wanted the honor to go to Barry Goldwater ever since his death. But not being Democrats, we have been content to wait out the five-year statutory cooling-off period after death.

Now Napolitano comes along and wants her choice to jump the queue to advance her sputtering political career. Just like all the other times, obeying the law is for Republicans, not Democrats.

Even "politically correctified" dictionaries provide the accurate etymology for the word "squaw":

squaw (skwô) noun
Offensive.
1. A Native American woman, especially a wife.
2. A woman or wife.

[Massachusett squa, younger woman.]

""Squaw" is a word that means female genitalia and has been such a source of humiliation in the Indian people for years"

I have never seen an authoritative source to confirm this statement.

It was on Oprah! Good enough?:^)

KFYI has really been working this whole thing over!! Liddy & Hill are so funny, they are using mobster voices and music to get the point across.

Somebody said that eventually the Peak will be called "Pie" Peak, and the Parkway will be referred to as "51".

" Somebody said that eventually the Peak will be called "Pie" Peak, and the Parkway will be referred to as "51"."

I opined the same last week except I said Pie Peak and the nickle-one. Some friggin tribute.

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