Northeastern State University, in Oklahoma, plans to stop using its American Indian nickname, the Tulsa World reported today.
The decision followed the Cherokee Nation’s refusal to support the nickname, the “Redmen.”
Thirteen months ago, the NCAA banned 18 institutions from participating in or playing host to postseason events for using what it deemed to be hostile and abusive American Indian imagery (The Chronicle, August 5, 2005). Northeastern was not on the list, but it created a universitywide task force to evaluate whether it should keep its nickname.
Since then, the NCAA has reversed itself for one prominent university (The Chronicle, August 24, 2005), but upheld penalties for several others (The Chronicle, May 1).
