The North Dakota Supreme Court upheld a lower-court decision today that hastens the day when the University of North Dakota’s Fighting Sioux mascot and nickname are officially retired. In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court held that the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education has the authority to change those controversial symbols before a November 30 deadline that was set in an agreement with the NCAA. Under that deal, the university pledged to retire the Indian images unless two Sioux tribes agreed to retain them. Only one of the two did, and members of that tribe had asked the high court to reverse the lower-court ruling.
[Update:] The state board, meeting later in the day, said a decision it reached last May to retire the nickname and mascot would stand and advised university leaders to go ahead with the transition, The Grand Forks Herald reported. It’s not clear how long that will take, but the university’s athletics Web site said the teams would remain the Fighting Sioux through the next academic year.
Follow The Ticker through your favorite RSS reader.
11 Responses to North Dakota Supreme Court Rejects Appeal by ‘Fighting Sioux’ Supporters
jffoster - April 8, 2010 at 1:41 pm
Why doesn’t the NCAA have the guts to go after Notre Dame’s “Fight8ing Irish”? Because that would lead to wholesale withdrawals from the NCAA. Those imbeciles even tried to make U of Illinois get rid of the name “Illini” along with the Chief until the State pointed out that everybody from Illinois is called an ‘Illini”.
tondaleyo - April 8, 2010 at 4:46 pm
The NCAA needs to be consistent about the Native American mascot issue. They allow FSU to continue with the Seminoles because the Seminole Indians say it’s OK. It seems to me that if using a Native American mascot is demeaning, it’s demeaning, period, end of story. Regardless of what a tribe (if they are still around) has to say.
amcneece - April 8, 2010 at 5:14 pm
The FSU Seminoles were originally called the Seminads, after another lesser known tribe in North Florida. At the time FSU began to play football (around 1949), it had just begun allowing men to enroll. Prior to that time it had been an all female college, The Florida State College for Women. Then at the first football game, a group of male fans started rooting for their team, the Seminads. The young ladies were aghast at the cry of “Go, Nads! Go, Nads! That’s when the team name was changed to Seminoles, and a more civilized battle cry of “Go, Noles” was adopted.
victorl - April 8, 2010 at 5:36 pm
#3, that’s hilarious! And thus is the stuff of momentous policy made!
11152658 - April 8, 2010 at 6:02 pm
Dear amcneece: Very funny. Verrrrrrry funny.Rough Sam Pam
daviddbest - April 8, 2010 at 7:45 pm
Tondaleyo (#2) is missing the point as to whether/when something is demeaning. If the lions share of an ethnic group supports being used as a theme and/or mascotized, then obviously that lions share does not consider itself demeaned.Also… if Notre Dame was founded by/for Irish Catholics, the only appropriate comparison would be a tribal college.
unabashedmale - April 9, 2010 at 9:19 am
I object to the name “Yankees” being applied to the New York baseball team.It was a derogatory term used by Southerns to descibe Northerners during the Civil War.Afterall, wholesale stupidity is in session right now.
jffoster - April 9, 2010 at 10:07 am
Actually, 7, we Southerners still use the ter you mention for that use, but when we use it it has a prefix and you look it in a dictionary up under the letter D–. But the term is used in New England I believe to refer to a Vermonster who eats pie for breakfast — which I found to be a pretty good custom.
looksioux - April 9, 2010 at 3:36 pm
I believe it is not the use of the Indian tribe’s name itself that is considered offensive; I believe it is the adjective used with it…e.g. FIGHTING Irish; FIGHTING Illini; FIGHTING Sioux. Moreover, the symbols associated with some mascots often depict the native tribe as “savages;” surely this is offensive. If only the name of a tribe is used…e.g. Cherokees, with no “fighting” or savage type symbols attached, then I don’t see how it is offensive. Worst of all, in my view is the used of “Redskins.” This is akin to calling an African-American team the “N” word.
jffoster - April 11, 2010 at 7:44 am
Ah, they can call themselves the “Kumbaya Singing” Sioux or Illini and that’ll be OK! Imbeciles and Idiots run the NCAA.
ashlindn - April 22, 2010 at 11:06 am
I just have one question, are any of you that are arguing with the idea of changing mascots native? It is disappointing to have people jump to academic arguments when this is a very personal issue. Part of the issue I see, is that using a Native group as a mascot without their consent is to treat them like they don’t exist or are not thoughtful human beings. Native people are not fairy tale characters.