Deadlines come and go in the debate over whether the University of North Dakota will keep its Fighting Sioux nickname, which the NCAA considers offensive, unless two Sioux tribes in the state endorse its use. The State Board of Higher Education had set an October 31 deadline for hearing from Standing Rock Sioux leaders about whether they would hold a referendum on the issue. But the matter is less than urgent for the tribe, the Grand Forks Herald reports. Its leaders “would be open to discuss the matter,” the tribe’s chairman, Charlie Murphy, wrote in a letter last week, but they “would prefer an open dialogue as opposed to a stipulated arrangement under deadline.” State board members are now debating whether that means they should extend the deadline again.
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5 Responses to Tribe Rejects Deadlines on Sioux Nickname Issue, but Debate Goes On
jffoster - November 3, 2009 at 7:05 am
White man always in heap big hurry. This of course shows that the policital correctness NCAA and State Board really don’t care much about the Indians. This is really about something else.
geoz32 - November 3, 2009 at 8:36 am
I don’t think you can say that it shows political correctness, nor what the NCAA and State Board care about. Isn’t there enough drama without that?
garyz - November 3, 2009 at 10:18 am
Have any Sioux tribes in ND endorsed the “Fighting Sioux” moniker?
jasonpaneque - November 3, 2009 at 11:41 am
@ garyzAccording to one of the above links, one of the two Sioux tribes in North Dakota, the Spirit Lake Sioux, has already voted to let the university keep the mascot.
wisernow - November 3, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Having grown up with Native Americans in the midwest, and having a deep appreciation for their culture, I assume the Sioux like the fighting image. Now the Euro-Americans are trying to take that away too. The only regret that the Sioux have is that they lost — especially considering our wreckage of the Sioux lands in less than 100 years.