Education
Spirit Lake Nation members oppose 'Fighting Sioux'


Members of the Spirit Lake Nation voted on Tuesday to oppose the "Fighting Sioux" nickname and logo of the University of North Dakota, The Grand Forks Herald reported.

The move came as UND lodged its official appeal of the NCAA's Indian mascot policy [Appeal Website]. UND officials previously suggested that the Spirit Lake Nation's stance would help their cause.

"The fact that some tribes support the use of American Indian imagery and others are, at least, okay with it, suggests that, in no way, is such imagery inherently objectionable hostile or abusive," UND President Charles Kupchella said in a letter.

Four other tribes in North Dakota are already on record as opposing the name. But Kupchella claims some Sioux tribes previously gave their approval to the university.

He also equated the school's Indian imagery with "the use of the nicknames 'Braves' and 'Warriors' used by sport teams on reservations here in the Dakotas, or American Indian powwows which we host annually here on our campus" and said the logo is not stereotypical.

Get the Story:
COLLEGE NICKNAMES: UND appeals NCAA logo ban (The Grand Forks Herald 8/31)
Spirit Lake withdraws support for nickname (The Grand Forks Herald 8/31)
Spirit Lake general assembly votes to withdraw UND nickname support (The Grand Forks Herald 8/30)

NCAA Announcement:
NCAA Executive Committee Issues Guidelines for Use of Native American Mascots at Championship Events (August 5, 2005)

Relevant Links:
University of North Dakota - http://www.und.edu
Fighting Sioux - http://www.fightingsioux.com
NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee - http://www1.ncaa.org/eprise/main/
membership/governance/assoc-wide/moic/index.html

National Coalition on Racism in Sports and Media - http://www.aimovement.org/ncrsm

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