“Indian people’s civil rights once again have been ignored, not only by the Standing Rock tribal leaders and the higher education board, but by anti-nickname activists as well”
What civil rights is this guy talking about? Just because use of the same or similar name? Give me a break.
I really think all of this name changing because they represent Indians is just stupid.
For one, the white settlers gave them names like Indians and Souix. So they do not own the rights to the names. They are not discriminatory names by any means any more than saying a guy is white or Caucasian.
Also, If they are called the fighting Souix, then that would be a proud name, not even remotely racial or negative in any way. It is a reminder of our country’s past and actually honoring them in a way.
I know the Indians for the most part dont even mind most of the names used as logo’s, but the politically correct coffee clutches of people with nothing better to do seem to push the right buttons on the state governments and larger corporations.
We had garbage like this with our Marquette Warriors here in wisconsin.
Pretty soon all the teams will just have symbols for their names and logo’s, sort of like the artist formerly known as prince!!!
The politically correct people need some major chlorine in their gene pools, cuz this stuff is stupid.
Here’s Tom Dennis’s current editorial about the board’s recent action:
OUR OPINION: Board made its nickname decision too early Grand Forks Herald – 04/10/2010 The tribal supporters who filed a lawsuit on the Fighting Sioux nickname were wrong on the letter of the law. But the supporters were right on the law’s spirit. At long last, the nickname settlement had given Indian people a chance to be heard on the issue. The process was unfolding in relevant and meaningful ways. Now, it has been cut short by the Board of Higher Education. By doing so, the board left itself open to the charge that it doesn’t care what Indian people think — exactly the claim nickname opponents had made in the decades leading up to the settlement. That’s why the board’s decision Thursday to retire the nickname was a mistake. The board should have let the process at Standing Rock play out, thus giving nickname supporters there the time they thought they’d been promised to organize a referendum and follow-up council vote. A Herald editorial asked this question late last year, and it remains relevant today: What’s the rush? Why couldn’t the board have waited until November, when the nickname issue would have been settled not only with 100 percent certainty, but also in a way more acceptable to both sides? The words “Summit League” are not an answer. UND was on its way to a clear, fair and unifying resolution of difficult issue. That outcome was only seven months away. If the case had been made to the Summit League in those terms, league officials likely would have acquiesced. After all, it was settlement they had said they were after. It was settlement that, within a few months, they were going to get. There are those on both extremes of this issue who, come November, would have stayed bitter forever in defeat. But there are many, many more who are closer to the middle and would have accepted the verdicts of the tribes. And by “many, many more,” we mean that even people as pro-nickname as Jody Hodgson would have accepted the outcome. “If Standing Rock voted and wanted to change the nickname, I’d be the guy at the front of the group saying it’s time to change this thing,” Hodgson said Thursday. Hodgson is general manager of the Ralph Engelstad Arena. He comes about as close to channeling the spirit of Ralph Engelstad as anyone in Grand Forks. If Hodgson would have accepted defeat, most other supporters would have accepted defeat. Very importantly, that also includes the Spirit Lake tribal members who filed suit — strong nickname supporters who were insisting not on winning, not on keeping the nickname, but simply on delaying a final decision until November, thus letting the process at Standing Rock play out. The board could have — should have — fulfilled that reasonable request. Because the board didn’t do so, it looks like the nickname issue may not be settled after all. First, UND now may have to deal with an openly defiant Ralph Engelstad Arena. The outcome of that battle is anybody’s guess, but the keen interest that the Chronicle of Higher Education and other outlets will show in it is a safer bet. Second, Archie Fool Bear said he and his group still will pursue a nickname referendum at Standing Rock. Majority or supermajority support there, coupled with the supermajority support at Spirit Lake, will make for a lot of second-guessing about the state board’s pre-emptive decision. Third, some fall-off in alumni support is likely and would have been no matter how or when the board ruled. But that drop probably will be sharper now than it would have been in November. For evidence, see Hodgson above and understand that he represents some important core of UND’s support. In short, little would have been lost and a lot would have been gained if the board had waited a mere seven months. The board’s refusal to do so angered and frustrated nickname supporters, including — as the state now knows — thousands of Spirit Lake and Standing Rock Sioux. — Tom Dennis for the Herald
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