A Lakota student’s feather plume was cut off her cap during commencement at a New Mexico high school

FARMINGTON, N.M. (AP) — A Lakota student’s traditional feather plume was cut off her cap during her high school commencement this week in the northwestern New Mexico community of Farmington. The Tri-City Record reports that faculty members approached Genesis White Bull and confiscated her cap on Monday night during the national anthem. The cap was decorated with beadwork and a plume. White Bull is Hunkpapa Lakota of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. The school district says the staff members were following district protocol because modifications to graduation attire aren’t allowed. The incident has sparked criticism from Indigenous leaders around the country, including the Navajo Nation’s first lady.