Reconsidering the University of North Dakota's Nickname
The tribal council of the Standing Rock Reservation narrowly voted down a tribe member's request to determine support for the University of North Dakota's "Fighting Sioux" nickname through a public vote, the Associated Press reports.
Although UND made plans to retire its nickname and logo in August 2010 after receiving criticism that the name and symbol were offensive, not everyone agrees with the critics. Archie Fool Bear, a supporter of the nickname, says he does not think Wednesday's 7-6 council vote against a referendum was decisive because two council members were absent and one abstained.
Fool Bear says he and other members of the Standing Rock and Spirit Lake Sioux tribes plan to continue lobbying for a reservationwide referendum on the issue. But these and other efforts might be fruitless: Last year, the Standing Rock Tribal Council not only publicly opposed the university's nickname but also voted to ban a referendum on the issue.
Searching for a college? Get our complete rankings of America's Best Colleges.
Tags: North Dakota | colleges | University of North Dakota
Tools: 
Share
|
| Comments (6) | Print
Reader Comments
Bill Bartmann
Cool site, love the info.
Keep "Fighting Sioux"
Contacts with Native Americans were experienced by me during my 7 years in airborne infantry units in the U.S.(82d Airborne Div),West Germany(505th Abn Inf)and two tours in Vietnam (173d
Airborne Bde)in 1966 and 1970. These Native Americans served proudly and honorably as volunteer paratroopers in my rifle platoon, rifle company and infantry battalion commands. They were true warriors.Chief Crazy Horse would have been proud to have had them in his ranks.
It is my strong belief that it is a great honor to have the Sioux Warrior represent the University of North Dakota athletic teams. Chief Sitting Bull and Chief Craxy Horse were truly great warriors and even greater leaders. The UND "Fighting Sioux" Warrior would continue to honor that legacy.
drop the "Fighting" part of the nickname
To me it seems obvious that a solution a long time ago would have been to drop the "Fighting" part of "The Fighting Sioux of North Dakota" and just be "The Sioux of North Dakota". Putting "Fighting" in front of the name brings so many bad connotations to my mind and I'm sure to the rest of the Indian nation, there is no positive that can come from that.
advertisement
