"The Offendians -- Native American activists who seek political leverage by manufacturing outrage at alleged white intolerance -- have elicited a startling apology from Dartmouth College's athletic director.
Writing in the student newspaper on Wednesday, Josie Harper, Dartmouth director of athletics and recreation, apologized for "the pain that (an upcoming hockey tournament) will cause."
Is she psychic? No, she's just been on the receiving end of complaints from Native American students at Dartmouth who claim to be offended that the college has invited the University of North Dakota to participate in a men's hockey tournament late next month. The University of North Dakota's athletic teams are called the Fighting Sioux.
Writing that the tournament "will understandably offend and hurt people within our community," Harper continues, "Let me state clearly that UND's position is offensive and wrong."
We don't know how Harper reached that sweeping conclusion. Native Americans in North Dakota are not unanimous on the subject, but many support the nickname. North Dakota's Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe approves of the nickname. Though the Standing Rock Sioux judicial committee officially rejected the name, Archie Fool Bear, the council's chairman, has opposed the council's vote, stating that most of his tribe supports the nickname. In 1968, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe officially adopted the University of North Dakota's president into the tribe and gave the university the right to use the Sioux name."
Get the Story:Editorial: Offendians strike: Dartmouth AD cowers (The New Hampshire Union Leader 11/26) Relevant Links:
University of North Dakota - http://www.und.edu
The Ralph - http://www.theralph.com
Fighting Sioux - http://www.fightingsioux.com Related Stories:
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