The Struggle for Visibility: Defending the Right to Wear Regalia at Graduation

In California, students have the legal right to wear tribal regalia and other cultural items at graduation ceremonies. Despite this protection, some schools attempt to deny students this important right. For more information on the law and how to defend your rights, visit our resource page.

Ray Rocha

When the Comanche Tribe gifted my daughter Jennie an authentic stole to honor her heritage at graduation, she was excited and proud. She brought the stole to school before the ceremony to comply with Clovis Unified School District’s preapproval process. The school denied her request, claiming they wouldn’t allow her to wear the stole because they didn’t believe it was authentic due to the writing on it. Jennie was devastated. When she told me, I got emotional too.

I called the school to explain the cultural significance of the stole and how much it meant to Jennie and our family. However, the administration refused to reconsider, saying their decision was final. A school official even said, “If I let her wear it, then everyone will want to wear something.” I told him that’s exactly the point—everyone should be able to wear something that represents their heritage if they wish to do so.

Determined to fight this, I started researching. I learned about similar cases and reached out to Indigenous Justice, a Native American advocacy group, attorneys at California Indian Legal Services, as well as media outlets. I discovered that a California law passed in 2016 protects Native American students' rights to wear Tribal regalia at graduation ceremonies.

I also contacted our Tribe in Oklahoma, and at the request of California Indian Legal Services, our Tribal Chairman submitted an affidavit to the district confirming the authenticity of the stole. He even offered to come in person to address the issue.

Jennie, a straight-A student heading to Oregon State University, and a member of and ambassador for the Center for Advanced Research and Technology (CART), simply wanted to wear something that proudly represents her heritage. And it isn’t just about the stole—it was about being visible as a Native American.

Eventually, with the submission of a sworn statement from our Tribal Chairman and negotiation through California Indian Legal Services, the school relented, and Jennie was allowed to wear her tribal stole at graduation. But this incident highlights deeper issues with Clovis Unified’s policies and the ongoing fight for recognition of Native American cultural rights in schools.
 

Xavier Rain Tree

My parents taught me to be proud of my cultural identity.

And on my graduation day, I was excited to honor my Indigenous heritage by wearing the regalia my parents gifted me—including a graduation cap beaded by my mother.

But when I arrived at graduation, school staff demanded that I remove my regalia. They took the cap my mother made and tried to take my golden eagle feather. I felt humiliated—and I wasn’t the only one. Other students at my school were also prevented from wearing the cultural items that held significant meaning for them and their families.

What staff at schools like mine don’t understand is that wearing regalia is about being visible as an Indigenous person. It’s about celebrating our accomplishments and fighting against the erasure and assimilation that our people have long suffered.

Roman Rain Tree

When my son arrived for his graduation ceremony from Clovis Unified High School, he wore a beaded tassel with a golden eagle feather, a yarn belt, and a graduation cap beaded by his mother—each item a powerful symbol of his Indigeneity.  

But shortly after he arrived, school officials ordered him to remove his regalia. They confiscated his beaded cap and forbade him from wearing his other items. They gave him a generic tie in the name of conformity and assimilation. 

For over a century, Native children were prohibited from expressing their cultural identities at school. This included strict restrictions on their hair, and clothing. Students were harshly punished if they did not comply.  

Seeing my son subjected to this kind of cultural erasure was a gut-wrenching reminder of the painful legacy of the boarding school era. 

California law protects student’s right to wear tribal regalia at school graduations. Despite this, school districts like Clovis Unified still deny students like my son the opportunity to express their cultural identity during what should be a joyful celebration of their academic achievements.

Morning Star Gali

For many Indigenous students, graduation ceremonies have become a battleground over their right to wear traditional regalia. 

At a time when schools should be honoring and celebrating our children’s identities, administrators are instead strictly enforcing conformity and assimilation—practices that are deeply problematic given the public education system's long history of systematically erasing Indigenous people’s history and culture.

Many schools impose restrictive “pre-approval” processes that challenge the authenticity and significance of Indigenous regalia. This disrespects the cultural importance of these items and forces families to validate their heritage.

In Clovis, a student who followed the pre-approval process to wear regalia had her request declined because school staff questioned the regalia’s authenticity. Her family, tribe, and Indigenous Justice intervened, and after considerable time and effort, she was eventually allowed to wear her regalia. Such battles should not be necessary, as it is not for non-Indigenous people to determine what constitutes a meaningful cultural item for an Indigenous person.

Schools like Clovis view regalia as a problem to be solved or an exception to be managed. This approach and these policies reinforce the erasure of our people and our culture. After centuries of attempted genocide and the erasure of Indigenous culture, the right to celebrate graduation in a culturally meaningful way is not optional, and in fact, it’s the law.

How to Exercise Your Right to Wear Regalia at Graduation

• You can advocate for yourself or your student by informing your school of your rights and asking your school principal to respect them. Use this letter template to send to your school.
• You can also call the ACLU of Northern California’s Intake Line at (415) 621-2488 or submit your complaint online, or call the ACLU of Southern California’s Intake Line at 213-977-5253.

Access these and other resources in the “Tribal Regalia at Commencement Toolkit.”