Derogatory words are roiling the waters in Monona as a retired Edgewood College philosophy professor pushes for changing some place names.
The word in question is "squaw," an Algonquin Indian word for "woman" that has taken on a more derogatory connotation over the years as a putdown of women in general and American Indian women in particular.
The city of Monona has "squaw" in two place names, Squaw Circle and Squaw Bay, in an area of the city along Lake Monona's eastern shore.
"Squaw" has been banned for use in place names in several states, including Maine and Oregon, but it hadn't been a concern here until retired Professor Daniel Guilfoil approached the Monona City Council to complain about the use of the word.
He compared it to a racial slur against African-Americans. "The issue here is to respect the people," he said.
Guilfoil got the attention of Monona Ald. Doug Wood, who plans to introduce a resolution in February to the council, starting the process to get the "squaw" out of Squaw Circle and Squaw Bay.
"This hasn't come up in the past, but when word got out that we were looking at it, the Ho-Chunk Nation contacted me and explained how the word is offensive," Wood said. "I talked to a fair number of people in Monona, non-native folks, who either didn't care or really hadn't thought about it."
The Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission is also discussing changing the name of Squaw Bay, because the County Board would have to make a request to the Wisconsin Geographic Names Council, a body of the state's Department of Natural Resources.
A request would have to come from the County Board before the Geographic Names Council would consider changing a place name.
The council only meets once a year, with the next meeting coming up either in March or April.
According to its Web site, name changes are slow in coming, but in cases where derogatory terms such as "squaw" are used, it can act quickly if a community wants to make the change.
Lakes and Watershed Commission member Bill Graf, the County Board supervisor from Monona, said he'll introduce a resolution to the County Board to change the name of Squaw Bay if Monona wants to have it changed. He added that "a lot of people have discussed it and feel the name should be changed."
While the word "squaw" is attributed to the Algonquin language word for "woman," it also is believed to be a historically vulgar term in American Indian circles for "vagina."
The U.S. Geological Survey found over 900 place names in America containing the word "squaw" in a survey conducted in 2001.
Over time, the word has become offensive both to American Indians and whites.
"I always thought it to be really derogatory," said Cara Lee Murphy, a spokeswoman for the Ho-Chunk Nation, from its headquarters in Black River Falls. "I heard that word a lot when I was growing up."
The Ho-Chunk word for "woman" is "hinuk," which, if local residents want to continue with an American Indian theme for the names of the street and the bay, would be more appropriate for a tribe native to this area, Murphy said.
Any new name would be better for Squaw Bay, Guilfoil said.
"I don't really care what it's called as long as the name is not offensive to people," he said.
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