The group Mascots Matter says the Freeburg High School mascot, “The Mighty Midgets” is creating a hostile environment for people with disabilities.

Citing Section 504 and Title II of the Americans with disabilities act, the group says the school is breaking the law via the name because it accepts federal funding.

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The group doesn’t think they are being discriminated against because they aren’t being represented culturally. They believe they are being discriminated against because of the name "Midgets" that's being used.

Mascots Matter contend that “Midget” is a term used regularly to put people with forms of dwarfism down.

Google Maps Street View/Freeburg, IL. High
Google Maps Street View/Freeburg, IL. High
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The school’s nickname came from 1934 when a sports writer leaned into the notion that despite the diminutive stature of the school’s basketball team they defeated a previously undefeated school.

This isn’t the first time Freeburg High School has come under fire for the mascot name. A decade ago the group Little People of America put Freeburg on notice that they found the nickname dehumanizing.

Also, worth noting, Freeburg isn’t the only public high school with that particular nickname. Estherville-Lincoln Central in Iowa, Dickinson High in North Dakota, Putnam County High in Missouri are also “Midgets” and are cited by Mascots Matter.

Some high schools have acquiesced, switching their mascot name under pressure, like Hurley High in Wisconsin who changed from “Midgets” to “Northstars” in 2019.

Ironically, the moniker that embraces being overlooked and dismissed while still being capable of more than expected (the way many alumni and those in the public see it), might be erased by the very ones it proposes to embrace (who find it offensive).

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