"In an unprecedented move during winter graduation this year, Dr. Bob Boyd, vice president for student and outreach services at UND, broke into a line of graduates receiving their doctoral degrees to congratulate Eric Longie, the first person ever from the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation in Fort Totten, N.D., to receive a doctoral degree.
The announcement brought the audience and Longie's family out of their seats in a rousing ovation for this shy Dakota man. Eric and I have known each other casually for several years, but I didn't know about the long and winding path he had traveled to reach that moment in Chester Fritz Auditorium on Dec. 16.
In order to realize the significance of Longie's "first-ever" doctoral degree, it is important to understand a little of the life story of the Spirit Lake Dakota nation. It has been difficult for these American Indian people. Their history is filled with atrocities committed against them; there were times when they barely were able to eke out a living. And it has been a continuous struggle for them because of misunderstandings of their cultural ways and who they are."
Get the Story:
DORREEN YELLOW BIRD COLUMN: Road to success goes through rez
(The Grand Forks Herald 1/7)
More Dorreen Yellow Bird:
Yellow Bird: 2005 was a year of haunts, tragedy
(1/4)
Yellow Bird: Why do
young Indians come to UND? (12/19)
Yellow Bird: Road rage and good samaritans
(12/13)
Yellow Bird: Blessed with a
crazy but good week (12/12)
Yellow Bird:
Hope in woodpecker's survival (12/6)
Yellow Bird: Non-Native views not always accurate
(12/1)
Yellow Bird: Giving thanks and
mourning loss (11/22)
Yellow Bird:
Laughing is a gift from the Creator (11/15)
Yellow Bird: Smoking a hard addiction to break
(11/14)
Yellow Bird: The troll meets the
trickster in Dakotas (11/8)
Yellow Bird:
Some reservation nicknames a secret (11/2)
Yellow Bird: Halloween way back in the 'old days'
(10/31)
Yellow Bird: The importance of
Indian names (10/25)
Yellow Bird: Elders
taking more active role in tribe (10/17)
Yellow Bird: Bridge another page in tribal history
(10/10)
Yellow Bird: All tribes have
stake in 'Sioux' fight (10/6)
Yellow
Bird: Family opposes tribe's oil refinery (9/27)
Yellow Bird: Oil or ethanol? Another debate
(9/26)
Yellow Bird: Howling, not
dancing, with wolves (9/19)
Yellow Bird:
Clearing the air on the 'Sioux' name (9/14)
Yellow Bird: A black bear cub bit my finger
(9/12)
Yellow Bird: Becoming a nation of
cell phone heads (08/29)
Yellow Bird:
The wonderful sound of the 'pop' (8/22)
Yellow Bird: Paying tribute to corn, the sacred
plant (8/16)
Yellow Bird: Summer is the
season for wild berries (8/9)
Yellow
Bird: Summer ceremony for the children (8/8)
Yellow Bird: Don't study Kennewick Man remains
(07/18)
Yellow Bird: Speeding through
another summer (7/11)
Yellow Bird: All
men equal, except for 'savages' (7/5)
Yellow Bird: The growing pains of tribal leaders
(6/28)
Yellow Bird: Driving while
talking a new hazard (6/27)
Yellow Bird:
Winners became losers after Bighorn (6/21)
Yellow Bird: Horse ride against substance abuse
(6/14)
Yellow Bird: Diabetes epidemic in
Indian Country (6/13)
Yellow Bird:
Indian center at UND should look Indian (6/7)
Yellow Bird: New joys come with passage of time
(05/23)
Yellow Bird: 'Fighting Sioux'
doesn't honor Indians (5/17)
Yellow
Bird: Indian Health Service has failed us (5/10)
Yellow Bird: Talking with a World War II veteran
(5/9)
Yellow Bird: The amazing Monarch
butterfly (5/2)
Yellow Bird: Whole-wheat
fry bread isn't so bad (4/26)
Yellow
Bird: A visit to the Sacred Heart Monastery (4/19)
Yellow Bird: Indian gaming profits for the few
(4/18)
Yellow Bird: UND powwow a
showcase of our culture (4/12)
Yellow
Bird: Tex Hall declares war on diabetes (4/11)
Yellow Bird: Messages of life during time of sorrow
(4/4)
Yellow Bird: Media interested in
getting the true story (3/30)
Yellow
Bird: Red Lake people are gentle warriors (3/28)
Yellow Bird: Red Lake community in deep pain
(3/24)
Yellow Bird Series: Suicide on
the reservation (03/16)
Yellow Bird
Series: Suicide on the reservation (3/14)
Yellow Bird: Use state budget surplus to fund child
care (3/8)
Yellow Bird: An excellent
adventure in the country (3/7)
Yellow
Bird: Another one of my excellent adventures (3/1)
Yellow Bird: I'll take long hair over curling iron
(2/28)
Yellow Bird: 'Fighting Sioux'
needs to be changed (2/21)
Yellow Bird:
Don't pull funding from 'Iron Horse' (2/14)
Yellow Bird: Accepting my mother's passing
(2/8)
Yellow Bird: Churchills make lost
Indians look bad (2/7)
Yellow Bird: A
nation cannot flourish without children (2/1)
Yellow Bird: New center gives birth to new ideas
(1/31)
Yellow Bird: Education system has
seen many changes (1/25)
Yellow Bird:
North Dakota shouldn't step on tribes (01/17)
Yellow Bird: Gaming only a temporary fix for tribes
(1/10)
Yellow Bird: New Year brings out
unusual traditions (1/7)
Yellow Bird:
Bridges tell history of North Dakota tribe (12/07)
Yellow Bird: Watch out for dirt in your sausage
(11/30)
Yellow Bird: Elders still
maintain influence (11/29)
Yellow Bird:
Worst fry bread served during NMAI (11/23)
Yellow Bird: Boarding schools forced assimilation
(11/22)
Yellow Bird: The most terrifying
snowstorm ever (11/16)
Yellow Bird:
Feeling guilty about your new car (11/15)
Yellow Bird: Remembering my brother, a Vietnam vet
(11/9)
Yellow Bird: Native voters make a
difference (11/8)
Yellow Bird: Are the
Pequots really a tribe? (11/2)
Yellow
Bird: A story for Halloween night (11/1)
Yellow Bird: Cell phones now a part of rez life
(10/25)
Yellow Bird: Tribal college
leaders overlooked (10/19)
Yellow Bird:
Let's settle dispute over Sakakawea (10/12)
Yellow Bird: Discovering the ancestral spirits
(10/11)
Yellow Bird: Riding the rails
across the country (10/4)
Yellow Bird:
First visit to NMAI proves exciting (9/28)
Yellow Bird: Support the troops, but not the
war (09/14)
Yellow Bird: Singing to
myself about a new highway (9/13)
Yellow
Bird: A Sasquatch story from the Nez Perce (9/7)
Yellow Bird: A worthwhile visit to Nez Perce
relatives (9/6)
Yellow Bird: Students
breathe life into community (8/30)
Yellow Bird: Family-run restaurants real jewels
(8/25)
Yellow Bird: Indian athletes
should strive for gold (8/23)
Yellow
Bird: Not all Native people are conservative (8/23)
Yellow Bird: John Kerry's hands tell different
story (8/16)
Yellow Bird: Indians
becoming a force at the polls (08/03)
Yellow Bird: Ceremony provided needed respite
(8/2)
Yellow Bird: A newbies guide to
North Dakota Indians (07/12)
Yellow
Bird: Are mourning doves on the Atkins diet? (7/6)
Yellow Bird: Off-reservation casino deserves chance
(6/29)
Yellow Bird: Tribes should be
models of government (6/28)
Yellow Bird:
Rosalynn Carter a down-to-earth woman (6/22)
Yellow Bird: Program brings students to nature
(6/21)
Yellow Bird: How low should those
jeans go??? (6/15)
Yellow Bird: A world
away at tribal pow-wow (6/14)
Yellow
Bird: Reflecting on Civil Rights Act of 1964 (6/8)
Yellow Bird: Diversity, women welcome in government
(6/7)
Yellow Bird: Bush made 'poor
decisions' on Iraq war (06/02)
Yellow
Bird: No outlet for North Dakota holy water (5/24)
Yellow Bird: First Lakota finishes UND nursing
(5/18)
Yellow Bird: A goodbye to
Friends and Frasier! (5/17)
Yellow
Bird: Prisoner abuse recalls Indian massacre (5/11)
Yellow Bird: Mothers' distant memories still
strong (5/10)
Yellow Bird: Foreigners
more interested in Indians (5/4)
Yellow Bird: Tribes and media must work together
(5/3)
Yellow Bird: Native people lost
advocate in Elbers (4/27)
Yellow
Bird: Think about Earth Day every day (4/26)
Yellow Bird: Strong flower like spirit of Native
people (04/13)
Yellow Bird: Drum
policy excluded local tribes (04/12)
Yellow Bird: The phenomenon of the 'hobby
Indians' (04/06)
Yellow Bird: A
tribute to the warrior women (4/5)
Yellow Bird: Indians the most misunderstood
(3/31)
Yellow Bird: Keeping our
ceremonies sacred (3/29)
Yellow Bird:
Awakening for Native and Christian (3/23)
Yellow Bird: Saying goodbye, the Native way
(3/16)
Yellow Bird: Human rights in
North Dakota (3/15)
Yellow Bird: Hard
to find Indian like Martha Stewart (3/9)
Yellow Bird: Is Big Foot wandering reservation?
(3/8)
Yellow Bird: Sound of birds
heralds arrival of spring (3/2)
Yellow Bird: Big market for 'isms' in the media
(3/1)
Yellow Bird: Tribal justice
program to bring good (2/24)
Yellow
Bird: Indian perspective on Lewis & Clark (2/23)
Yellow Bird: In large family, sisters are
special (2/18)
Yellow Bird: Atkins
diet worked for Indian friends (2/16)
Yellow Bird: Big-city ballet in a Northern
Plains town (2/10)
Yellow Bird:
'Fighting Sioux' is poor sportsmanship (2/9)
Yellow Bird: Lake outlet a tough sell for many
(2/3)
Yellow Bird: The magic of the
Spirit of the North (2/2)
Yellow
Bird: Providing Indian education to public (1/26)
Yellow Bird: Long hair can be hazardous
sometimes (1/20)
Yellow Bird:
Remembering Grandmother Philomene (1/19)
Yellow Bird: Wild animals have a right to exist
too (01/13)
Yellow Bird: Tribe has
made incredible journey (1/12)
Yellow Bird: 'DreamKeepers' breaks
stereotypes (01/07)
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