Mascot IssueSaturday, April 29, 2006http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12532297/from/ET/ Illinois, North Dakota can't use Indian names NCAA rejects appeal by schools, puts Bradley on watch list for five years Updated: 5:19 p.m. ET April 28, 2006 INDIANAPOLIS - Despite a letter from one tribal leader in support of the Fighting Sioux nickname, North Dakota lost its appeal to the NCAA on Friday while Illinois and Indiana University of Pennsylvania didn’t fare any better. The governing body’s executive committee rejected appeals from all three schools that would have allowed them to use Indian nicknames or images without penalty. Bradley, the fourth school with an appeal, became the nation’s first to appear on a five-year watch list. The NCAA’s message was clear: It would not retreat from its policy banning the use of “hostile” and “abusive” Indian nicknames, mascots and imagery at championship events. “The NCAA has a responsibility to make sure its events are treated with respect for all and making sure that the environment is fully respectful,” NCAA president Myles Brand said during a conference call. Friday’s decisions came nearly eight months after Brand first announced the policy, which prohibits offenders from hosting postseason games and bars the use of Indian nicknames and images by everyone from coaches and players to cheerleaders and band members. Critics contend the NCAA should not legislate social behavior or morality. Brand, however, believes the policy could create more dialogue on campuses and in communities about showing respect for Indians. Instead of backing down, the executive committee expanded the policy to include a prohibition for offenders from hosting tournament games at off-campus sites. In the August announcement, NCAA officials banned those schools from hosting tournament games on campus. North Dakota president Charles Kupchella was surprised by the rejection after the university included a letter from Archie Fool Bear, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s judicial committee, in its documentation. Schools such as Florida State, Utah and Central Michigan all used supporting letters from nearby tribes to win their appeals. “We are not only disappointed by the NCAA’s action, we are baffled by it,” Kupchella said. The problem, committee chair Walter Harrison said, was that Standing Rock chairman Ron His Horse Is Thunder also sent a letter — opposing North Dakota’s nickname. “That was new evidence to me and it was very helpful,” Harrison said. “Coming from the chairman of the tribe, we found that to be very compelling.” Like Bradley, Illinois is now in a unique position. Illinois won an appeal in November to keep its nickname after demonstrating the use of Fighting Illini was not a direct Indian reference. School officials argued the term also referred to veterans from World War I. But Friday’s decision still bans Illinois from using its mascot, Chief Illiniwek, and other Indian images at postseason games. The school also cannot host tournament games. Chief Illiniwek, a student dressed in buckskins, dances at halftime of regular-season home football and basketball games and other athletic contests. “By branding an 80-year tradition ‘hostile and abusive,’ the NCAA inappropriately defames generations of Illinoisans and University of Illinois supporters,” Illinois board of trustees chairman Lawrence Eppley said. Bradley, nicknamed the Braves, stopped using a mascot and Indian imagery about 10 years ago — a move NCAA officials applauded. That helped Bradley avoid immediate penalties, but it now faces NCAA monitoring of its nickname and imagery at games, on campus and on web sites. It was the second and final appeal for all four schools. Brand would not say whether the schools could file more appeals if they produce more evidence. The schools do have one additional option — in court. “There’s always an opportunity for institutions to seek remedies in the courts,” Brand said. “But be assured, the NCAA feels very confident in its decision and will defend it (the policy) to the utmost.” Seven of the original 18 schools on the offenders list remain there. Newberry College in South Carolina still appears on the list despite an appeal pending with the executive committee. Five schools have agreed to change or have changed their nicknames already and four others won appeals — warranting the removal of all nine schools. posted by: Webmaster@ 8:39 PM
VIEWPOINT: Racism at protest shames UND By Denise K. Lajimodiere GRAND FORKS - "Don't you have more important things to worry about?" This statement often is posed by non-Native students at UND to Native students taking part in Fighting Sioux logo discussions. As a Native educator of 30 years, I can say I have nothing more important to worry about. I have committed my life to dealing with harmful and negative stereotypes and educating students on my reservation of their culture, traditions, ceremonies and spirituality. As Native people, we experience layer upon layer of stereotypes and images that dehumanize. Eurocentric curriculum and children's literature reinforce stereotypes of the "vanishing Indian," "romantic Indian," "militant Indian" or "drunken Indian." I have seen firsthand how these images, along with poverty or low socioeconomic status, generational trauma and other issues of reservation life contribute to low self-esteem in Native students. Despite these issues and because we have Native teachers, social workers, counselors, administrators and tribal leaders taking care of important things, we have many successful students enrolling at UND. The trouble is, Native students continue to be bombarded by negative stereotypical images perpetrated by the Fighting Sioux logo once they arrive on campus. Currently, I am a doctoral student in educational leadership at UND, a mother and grandmother and have been involved in the anti-logo movement since the 1970s. Still, it was with trepidation that I walked to the anti-logo vigil on the corner of Sixth Avenue North and Columbia Road on March 25. Standing silently with a small group of students, the first comment I heard yelled from a passing vehicle was, "Go back to where you came from!" This comment was followed by yells of "F• you! Go back to your tipi! Drink firewater! If the logo goes so do your programs! You should be proud! I have an Indian friend and he likes the logo!" We were flipped the middle finger more than 30 times, with one vehicle turning on its overhead dome light so we could see all the occupants gesturing. Imprinted on my brain is the angry, twisted face of a young blonde woman yelling at us. In light of such behavior, I'm proud of the quiet dignity that the students and adults maintained during the two hours standing on the corner. "Go back where you came from!" This chant often was aimed at my family's home in Portland, Ore., during the 14 years we were "relocated" off the reservation. Groups of students from local schools would gather to throw dirt clods and pine cones at our front door. These were kids I went to school with. In school, being called "squaw" and "stinking Injun" was a daily ordeal. My braids often were used to jerk me around the playground. It takes a tremendous amount of courage, strength and resiliency for a Native student wanting to leave the reservation to continue his or her education. And many, like me, have our first experiences of racism off the reservation. I am horrified and distressed by the overt racism we saw that Saturday night. The continuation of negative stereotypes portrayed in comments hurled at us is witness to the ongoing ignorance of Native culture, no matter how many years we have worked to gain awareness and understanding. My heart aches for all Native students attending this university now and in the future. The Fighting Sioux logo stands out among colleges nationwide as a mark of institutionalized racism. As an educator and former administrator, it is hard for me to understand how UND can ignore NCAA recommendations to retire the logo. But in light of the ongoing and relentless stereotypes that the logo perpetrates, I stand firm in urging this university to retire the Fighting Sioux name. As I move into a professorship at North Dakota State University, it is with relief that I will not be confronted by logo issues on a daily basis. I'm tired of having my braids jerked. Lajimodiere holds a bachelor's degree from UND and is a doctoral student there. http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/news/opinion/14321431.htm posted by: Webmaster@ 7:44 AM
Illinois appeals Illiniwek decision to NCAA executive committee .c The Associated Press CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) - The University of Illinois filed its second appeal of an NCAA decision that would require the school to drop its Chief Illiniwek athletic mascot and logo before it could host any postseason competition. The latest appeal, filed Tuesday, seeks to persuade the NCAA to reverse a decision by its executive committee last August that concluded Chief Illiniwek was an example of ``hostile and abusive'' American Indian imagery. The university appealed and a staff review committee in November upheld the ``hostile and abusive'' classification of Illiniwek, but allowed the school to keep its Illini and Fighting Illini nicknames. The new appeal, to the same committee that approved the original policy, challenges the NCAA's power to impose it. ``This appeal is about the institutional autonomy of NCAA member schools,'' board of trustees chairman Lawrence C. Eppley said in a 15-page appeal letter. ``It is about flawed rules and process.'' NCAA spokesman Bob Williams did not immediately return a telephone message Tuesday. Illinois was one of 18 schools deemed by the NCAA executive committee last August to be using improper imagery or mascots. The organization decreed that any school continuing to use the images after Feb. 1, 2006, would be barred from hosting postseason competition and could not display the image at any postseason tournament. 01/31/06 13:33 EST posted by: Webmaster@ 5:06 PM
.c The Associated Press DURANT, Okla. (AP) - Some American Indian groups say Southeastern Oklahoma State officials made a poor decision when they changed the school's nickname from the Savages to the Savage Storm. ``It remains a slap in the face to all Native Americans and needs to be retired along with other images deemed racially harmful,'' said Cindy Martin, a member of the Tulsa Indian Coalition Against Racism. The group says the school should have removed the word, savage, rather than continue to use it in modified form. The Board of Regents of Oklahoma Colleges approved the name change Jan. 20. A new logo is still being developed. No American Indian imagery will be associated with the new nickname. Glen Johnson, university president, said an advisory committee of Indian students, school alumni and administrators carefully chose the new name. Other names that were considered included ``The Stampede.'' ``We have tried to be deliberate and thorough,'' Johnson said. ``We feel that now Savages has nothing to do with Native Americans, but more of being a fierce competitor.'' The change of nickname came after adoption of a new NCAA policy that prohibits colleges and universities from displaying hostile ethnic mascots or imagery at any regional championship games. The policy also prohibits those schools from hosting postseason championship events. Choctaw tribal leaders, whose headquarters are in Durant, said the name change was welcome. ``When you change tradition, you want to keep as much tradition as you can,'' Chief Greg Pyle said. ``We find that works in our tribe.'' 01/27/06 12:01 EST posted by: Webmaster@ 9:44 AM
By CLIFF BRUNT .c The Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Bradley and North Dakota will be able to keep their American Indian nicknames during NCAA postseason play this season, but still might lose them in the future. The NCAA's executive committee did not make a final decision regarding either school's appeal during a meeting Monday, allowing Bradley to remain the Braves and North Dakota to keep its Fighting Sioux nickname at least until the panel's next meeting April 27. The ban on the postseason names, which was to take effect Feb. 1, also would have eliminated both schools from hosting postseason tournaments. Bradley and North Dakota were among 18 schools deemed by the NCAA in August to have nicknames, mascots or logos that are ``hostile or abusive'' to American Indians, and both schools appealed. An NCAA staff review committee rejected bids by both schools to be removed from the list, so they appealed to the executive committee. ``North Dakota will be held harmless through the April meeting, and the same approach will be taken to Bradley because there was an inability to complete the discussion and a decision wasn't reached,'' NCAA president Myles Brand said. Phil Harmeson, a senior associate to North Dakota's president, said the university was told last week by the NCAA that it would delay making a decision on the school's appeal after receiving a 35-page rebuttal from the school late last month. ``We'll just have to wait until April 27,'' Harmeson said. Bradley spokesman Bobby Parker declined to comment Monday. He said the school would release a statement Tuesday. Bradley and North Dakota had argued that their Indian nicknames symbolize attributes of bravery such as courage and honor. Bradley officials have said the NCAA was inconsistent when it applied the ban, allowing eight schools to keep the nickname ``Warriors'' because they have dropped mascots and logos. The Florida State Seminoles, Central Michigan Chippewas and Utah Utes appealed and were allowed to keep their names and imagery because of support from local American Indian tribes. Illinois also appealed the NCAA's decision and was told in November that its use of the Fighting Illini nickname was acceptable, but its tradition of a buckskin-clad Chief Illiniwek dancing at home sporting events was not. 01/09/06 22:33 EST posted by: Webmaster@ 8:52 AM
Indiana high schools hold fast to Indian nicknames STEVE HERMAN Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS - Chief Wawasee's head is superimposed over the letter W, the symbol of Wawasee High School's Warriors. The Anderson Indians play basketball in a historic gymnasium still known as the Wigwam. From Shakamak to Elkhart, the state's deep Indian heritage is firmly entrenched in the names of schools and communities. But whether Indian nicknames are hostile and offensive references, as the NCAA has contended with some colleges, or show respect and admiration for Native Americans is a close call these days. "The word Warrior places us in the gray area of being disrespectful," said Mary Hurley, the athletic director at Wawasee, which means "Full Moon" and is named for a Miami Indian chief who lived in what is now northern Indiana. Gray area or not, high schools nationwide are holding fast to tradition, refusing to follow the NCAA's lead in requiring teams to remove Indian nicknames or logos from team, cheerleader and band uniforms in postseason tournaments. The Indianapolis-based National Federation of State High School Associations has taken a hands-off approach, saying the nickname issue is best left to individual schools and districts. "There are so many and such a wide variety of names across this country - we don't have any authority in that area, and we just feel that's a local matter," said Bob Gardner, the head of the federation and a former Indiana High School Athletic Association commissioner. "They (NCAA) have taken their position, and I guess it works for them," he said, "but we just feel like at the high school level, there's such tradition." That tradition is front and center in Indiana, which means Land of the Indians. The 2000 U.S. Census found that it is home to about 18,000 American Indians and Alaska natives, although there are no federally recognized tribes in the state. Eighteen of the more than 400 schools in the Indiana State High School Athletic Association use the nickname Warriors. That's second only to Panthers, used by 19 schools. Nine schools have Braves as their nickname and eight have Indians. Others include Cherokees, Mohawks and Redskins. Wabash High School became the Apaches in 1932 - even though the Apaches did not inhabit Indiana - as the result of a school contest to replace the former nickname Hill Climbers. "Apaches was selected mostly because of Geronimo and the image people had of Apaches as tough and strong," athletic director Matt Stone said. "Our symbol is a true-to-life head shot of an Apache Indian, and we have done everything possible to show pride in the Apaches and not degrade them. "I feel that if you have pride in your mascot and do nothing to degrade or insult the mascot, whether it is Apaches, Vikings, or Fighting Irish, it should be no big deal." Some schools have kept their Indian nicknames only after careful review. Lake Central, in northwestern Indiana's Lake County, opted to stick with Indians after a school committee reviewed how that portrayed Native Americans. "I don't believe it is offensive in how we use it," athletic director Mark Peterson said. Brebeuf, a Roman Catholic school in Indianapolis, decided to keep the name Braves but has done away with all Indian imagery. "We also have stopped doing the war chant, tomahawk chop during our contests," athletic director Brian Brase said. Wawasee phased out the use of a live mascot at games nine years ago and replaced a Warrior caricature with a "more dignified Warrior," Hurley said. "Obviously, with the past importance and heritage of Native Americans to this locale, we have attempted to treat all use of a mascot or symbol with respect and with honor," she said. "We educated our students to eliminate degrading or negative stereotypical Indian behaviors. We do frown upon the use of a Warrior in any disrespectful role, such as a scalping." The city of Anderson, which is named for Chief William Anderson, whose mother was a Delaware Indian, has used the nickname Indians for more than 70 years. "We haven't heard a word (of complaint)," athletic director Steve Schindler said. "I don't know if it's because of the Indian history in town - there's some Indian festivals, Mounds Park here in Anderson is an Indian burial ground, Muncie is an Indian city - it hasn't been an issue yet." The state athletic association doesn't plan to make it one. "It's not something we need to take a position on ... telling them what they should be called and what they shouldn't," the IHSAA's Jason Wille said. "Obviously, with the NCAA taking the position they did, we just didn't feel in the same situation." posted by: Webmaster@ 7:23 PM
Arkansas St. Weighing Options on Nickname By NOAH TRISTER .c The Associated Press LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas State athletic director Dean Lee said the school isn't sure whether it will appeal the NCAA's ban of the nickname Indians at postseason events. ``We are being encouraged to file an appeal,'' Lee said. ``But that's still yet to be determined if that's the process that we're going to go.'' The NCAA announced in August that it would ban the use of American Indian imagery and nicknames at postseason tournaments. That prohibition was extended the following month to include football bowl games - beginning next year. Several schools have appealed. Indiana University of Pennsylvania's appeal on behalf of the name Indians was turned down earlier this month. Other teams, like the Florida State Seminoles, have won the right to retain their nicknames. Lee said Arkansas State has been encouraged to follow suit by ``fans, alumni, donors and constituents.'' But the school is proceeding slowly. ``We've been somewhat deliberate in our movement with this, because we have kind of used - I don't want to say a committee approach - but we've used a kind of a community approach where we've gotten involvement from a lot of different people in groups associated with the university,'' Lee said. Arkansas State recently qualified for the New Orleans Bowl, its first postseason appearance in football since returning to Division I-A before the 1992 season. But the nickname ban doesn't start until February, so it won't affect the Indians in the Dec. 20 game at Lafayette, La. The NCAA said in August that approval from American Indian tribes would be a primary factor in deciding appeals. 11/29/05 17:48 EST posted by: Webmaster@ 8:37 AM
|
