We have all heard the news about the University of North Dakota's long battle with nickname change. It finally came to an end a couple of days ago, North Dakota State Board of Higher education has decided to drop the logo and nickname of the Fightin Sioux during a news conference in Grand Forks on Friday, April 9th. This decision has made people angry and frustarated, and others don't really care about it. If you had attened a Sioux game prior to the decision, the national anthem was sung and instead of "home of the brave" it was "home of the Sioux". Many people don't think that will ever change because like most other colleges UND is steeped in tradition. Another example of this kind of tradition is the Civil war even though it ended over a hundred years ago, people in the South still fly Confederate flgas. Associations and identities don't change over-night or even in a couple of years, but maybe it will change over a few generations.
One of my friends attends UND and she was really upset about the board's decision and she texted me and said what am I going to do with all my Sioux stuff? Then by the end of the conversation she decided to still wear it around in support of the tradition. In an article written by the Fargo forum, the writer has said that most people from, in, or around North Dakota will still proudly wear Fighting Sioux apparel, which I can't blame them for because it's the tradition of the school Von Pinnon states in his article, "UND freshmen will be indoctrinated in the Fighting Sioux tradition by upperclassmen. Underground clubs may form to keep the traditions alive. People will identify as either Fighting supporters or not."
http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/275057
In the Forum's Saturday edition in the Sports section, they had interviewed the hockey coach who said that in the hockey locker-room there is a quote that reminds the players to honor the Sioux tribes in how they perform and carry themselves for each game. Even if the team isn't the Fighting Sioux anymore it isn't going to change the team's approach. He also sated that, he wants to honor the traditions of the Fighting Sioux in the right way.
http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/275145/group/Sports
The media in North Dakota has been going crazy about this, I realized the media has only interviewd the coaches, players, and other people connected to the University, but nobody has interviewed the people, the Sioux nation, that it has really affected. There are even groups on Facebook that thousands of people have joined, there are some people that think if they join then the nickname won't be chanaged, but the decision has been made, now drop it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I know that UND will have to change their nickname, but they cannot force the students, faculty and fans to change. Everyone will still be wearing their Sioux gear to all the sporting events, and they might even wear it more often just to ‘stick it to’ the council that made the name change. The Sioux may no longer be the Sioux, but I think tradition will stand for much longer than expected.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised that there haven’t been any interviews from the tribe members, isn’t it because of them that UND has to change their name? Shouldn’t a tribal leader step up and say thanks or something like that?
I had never really thought about students still wearing the gear to games even though it is not officially their mascot. I know a big discussion among students of the University of North Dakota is what should the new nickname be. I think that UND will always be remembered as the Fighting Sioux. You can not replace the history of the college and the powerful reputation that it has in its sporting programs all by a change of a name. I do think that through the NDUS the battle of this nickname can finally be solved and a solution can be demonstrated.
ReplyDelete