TACOMA, Wash. — Tacoma Public Schools has launched an investigation into why an Indigenous high school senior was barred from wearing her Native regalia at her graduation.
This happened in June, even though it's state law that schools must allow tribal members to wear culturally significant items at graduation ceremonies.
In an exclusive interview with KING 5 News, Gracie Ray and her family spoke out about what happened at the Tacoma Dome on June 13, 2024.
For most of the Lincoln High School seniors walking at the Tacoma Dome, graduation was filled with pride. But for one, it was fraught with grief and pain.
"Yes, it was very shameful," Gracie Ray said. "I felt...just...like I shouldn't be there."
Gracie Ray of Tacoma was going to be the very first person in her family to receive her diploma. The day was supposed to be even more special: she would get to honor her Native heritage, by wearing what's called a button blanket.
A button blanket is a ceremonial robe considered a powerful statement of Indigenous identity.
"It was just really important to me, I thought it would be nice to show this while getting the diploma," Gracie said.
But when she stood in line to walk, that's not what happened. Her principal stopped her.
"He's telling me to take off the button blanket, and how it's not allowed anymore," Gracie recalled. "And that if I don't take it off, I won't be able to walk, to receive my diploma with everyone else."
This was crushing for the entire family.
"Our family traveled great distances to come watch this moment, and the thing we knew was we were going to spot her right away because of her cape," Gracie's mother Jeannette Meeks said. "And we knew it, and we missed it...we didn't get that. We lost that. that was stolen. As she said, stolen."
Gracie said she had no choice: if she wanted to walk, she had to take off her button blanket with all eyes on her. She was mortified and worried so she also took her Indigenous stole off.
"He just thought it would be appropriate to talk to me about something in front of a bunch of people," Gracie said. "There were people in front of us turning around to look at this debacle, it's very disgusting. That's not how you handle the situation at all."
"I tried very hard not to make a scene or loud or get angry with these people," she added.
This never should have happened: four years ago, Washington State passed the Right to Graduate in Regalia Act...which states: "schools may not prohibit students who are members of a federally recognized tribe from wearing traditional tribal regalia...at graduation ceremonies."
"I'm like this was it, this was like the littlest thing we asked for," Sauncha Romey said. Romey, an Indigenous mom from Bonney Lake fought for this law to allow her own child to graduate in regalia at their graduation in 2020.
"What message does this send to our children that you can't be yourself for 30 seconds because that cap and gown is more important?" Romey said. "That enforcement is more important to the school districts than the wellbeing of our Native children?"
So how did this happen—especially at Tacoma Public Schools--one of the biggest, and most diverse districts in Washington State?
"The part of it being a Native garb was not translated in the request for permission," Tanisha Jumper said. Jumper is the director of communications at Tacoma Public Schools.
Jumper added that it was a chaotic day with multiple graduation ceremonies happening at the Dome. She explained there was a miscommunication to the director of schools about what exactly Gracie was wearing.
"Someone walked up to him and said, 'Can the student wear a different colored robe?' He didn't see the robe, he wouldn't have known it was a Native student and said no," Jumper explained. "No, you have to wear the black robe. That didn't translate."
Jumper said they as a district know that the Right to Graduate in Regalia Act is law, and has been for the past four years. She said the district communicated with staff but this proven that too much communication is never enough.
"We do communicate with families that they have the right but again it doesn't matter how much we communicate to them, if the person at the door doesn't fully understand the communication, there's an opportunity for miscommunication," Jumper added.
That mistake cost Gracie and her family moments they'll never get back.
"I've been very angry, I've been heartbroken, I've been facing the grief of basically my identity being stolen on such an important day," Gracie said.
And by speaking up, the family is hoping what a student is wearing is never in question and graduations can be a celebration for all.
"Our regalia carries a lot," Gracie said. "It's our ancestors, it's our cultures, our religion, it's earned," Jeannette added.
It's still unclear how this happened when we know a principal saw Gracie's regalia and still gave Gracie the directive to take it off. This is exactly what TPS is investigating.
Currently there's nothing in statute right now that carries a penalty or fine for violating the act. However, Romey, who pushed for this law said she does eventually want to amend the law to reflect a penalty.