Let’s not forget how these people view the Native American people they claim to be looking out for. When the Spirit Lake Nation voted to support the UND Fighting Sioux logo and nickname, these same politically-correct types claimed it was because they were uneducated.

The NCAA started this whole sorry mess but have been reluctant to actually let the tribes have a say in the matter. The State Board of Higher Education is doing the tribes a similar disservice in trying to sweep this decision through without giving the people of Standing Rock a chance to give their input. Who’s being “hostile and abusive” to Native American people here? Clearly it isn’t the UND fans.

I was able to thank Klaus Lembke in person the other day for making a motion to reconsider the SBHE decision to go ahead with retiring the nickname. Nobody had the sack to second the motion. I wish there were more voices of reason in this matter. If the people of Standing Rock are okay with referring to themselves as a Sioux tribe, then perhaps the hand-wringing liberals could chill out and show some respect to the people they claim to be trying to protect.

Archie Fool Bear, a member of tribal government, was on the Scott Hennen show last week and shed some light on the situation that puts to rest the lie that the nickname and logo are “hostile and abusive” as well as the idea that the tribe is responsible for last week’s hasty decision:

Click here to listen to the podcast in MP3 format.

In an article in the Star Tribune which no longer appears online, reporter Katherine Kersten pointed out that most of the people “offended” by the logo are not Native Americans. She also had a very telling quote by Mr. Fool Bear:

Members of the Standing Rock judicial committee visited UND early in 2006 to assess the situation for themselves. “We spoke to everyone, from students on the street to people at the gas station,” says Fool Bear. “Not one gave us any evidence of racism. We went to a hockey game, and they talked about the courage and integrity of the Sioux people. We looked at each other like, ‘Wow, we don’t even honor our Sioux warriors or veterans like this on the reservation.’ ”

“Our young people go there to get an education,” says Fool Bear. “When they arrive, they’re asked, ‘What do you think of the logo?’ If they have no problem with it, they are badgered and harassed for four years.”

I still maintain that this whole “hostile and abusive” nonsense is simply a pet project by a bunch of busybody liberals. The tribe plans to go ahead with its petitions to get a vote on support of the logo before November if possible. I hope we can still turn this around and save our University’s logo and nickname!

By the way, please take a few minutes to (politely) voice your opinions to the unelected members of the State Board of Higher Education for this ludicrous decision:

President Richie Smith: richard.e.smith.2@ndus.edu
Vice President Jon Backes: jon.backes@ndus.edu
Sue Andrews: sue.andrews@ndus.edu
Duaine Espegard: duaine.espegard@ndus.edu
Rachelle Hadland: rachelle.hadland@ndus.edu
Michael Haugen: michael.haugen@ndus.edu
Grant Shaft: grant.shaft@ndus.edu
Claus Lembke: claus.lembke@ndus.edu

When you write to Claus Lembke you really should thank him for his motion to reconsider last week. He actually gets it, apparently. Sadly, none of these other folks would second his motion and it went nowhere. Instead they went ahead and chose to retire the logo against the will of the tribes. Oh, how I wish we could vote (most of) these people off the SBHE, but they’re all appointed!

I am writing to strongly denounce the historical and recent affronts to the Native American community at Dartmouth and to offer the support of the athletics department in playing a leading role to combat racial, ethnic and sexist ignorance and intolerance on our campus.

At the same time, I must offer a sincere apology to the Native American community, and the Dartmouth community as a whole, for an event that will understandably offend and hurt people within our community. In late December, we will host a men’s ice hockey tournament that includes the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. UND is one of 14 colleges or universities that continue to maintain a Native American name and image to represent their athletic teams.

Let me state clearly that UND’s position is offensive and wrong. When we scheduled UND nearly two years ago to participate in our tournament, we did so without considering their team’s nickname and symbol. Perhaps we should have, but I deeply regret that we didn’t.

On Friday, as I was traveling on College business, a member of my staff met with the Native American Council to discuss our hockey tournament and to offer our apology for the pain that it will cause. In the days and weeks ahead, I will develop a specific and continuing plan to address issues of respect and tolerance within the athletic department as well as considering a policy for scheduling athletic contests against institutions that support offensive nicknames and symbols.

This is my response, a draft of which was sent to The Dartmouth:

I was surprised by Josie Harper’s letter apologizing for the “pain” caused by hosting the UND Fighting Sioux at their hockey tournament. I had no idea that Native Americans were present in such great numbers at Dartmouth and were so easily offended by our state’s tribute to the brave spirit of the Sioux warriors.

Right now North Dakota is under attack by a select few out-of-state advocates of political correctness. They claim our logo, drawn by a Native American artist, is “hostile and abusive.” I invite them to actually visit us sometime. Our highway signs and Highway Patrol cars have Native American figures on them. The hospital near my house has an area devoted to burning sage and other traditional Native American healing practices. UND itself hosts dozens of programs for Native Americans including the INMED program, which trains one fifth of the nation’s Indian physicians, as well as cultural programs, eight publications, and seven student organizations.

The only oppression I’ve heard of is of Native students who don’t mind the nickname. They’re treated like the Midwest’s version of an “Uncle Tom” by the PC police. Archie Fool Bear, chair of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe judicial committee, says his tribe’s leadership doesn’t represent the vast majority of tribal members. He said, “We went to a hockey game, and they talked about the courage and integrity of the Sioux people. We looked at each other like, ‘Wow, we don’t even honor our Sioux warriors or veterans like this on the reservation.’ ” How do the politically correct crowd honor this tribal elder? By trying to oust him from the tribal government.

We’d be just fine if a bunch of out of state PC liberals would quit trying to tell us how things need to be out here in flyover country. Perhaps if our team showed up named the UND Brave White Men we’d be more welcome. Then again, every single special interest riding Josie Harper’s politically correct bandwagon would then have a unifying reason to apologize for North Dakota’s painful presence. In the mean time, the only place we’ll apply real pain is on the ice, where it belongs…and actually exists.

Political correctness is insane. Heaven forbid we should offend anybody, anywhere, at any time! That is, of course, they happen to be white, heterosexual, Christian, male, or any combination thereof. Those are oppressive qualities and should be attacked at any opportunity.

This post was originally written on November 23rd, 2006. It resulted in my response being printed on the Dartmouth Review website (although I don’t know if it ever made it to print).

They did, however, put the cherry on top by portraying those hostile, abusive European imperialists on the sign below the 1804. Notice the absence of Sakakawea (or Sacajawea, or Sagagawea, or Sacagawea…heck, they change the pronunciation every time the white people finally learn it) on this sign, despite her important contribution to their journey as a guide.

So, the next time you want to take that scenic jaunt along the river between Bismarck and Washburn, or head down to the sandbox that used to be Beaver Bay before the Army Corps of Engineers laid waste to it, make sure you look away from these hostile, abusive signs along the way. Perhaps we can get the roads banned from the postseason.

If you’re new to the ‘blog, I don’t hold a prejudice against the indigenous peoples of North Dakota, in fact the opposite is very true. I do, however, think the whole UND Fighting Sioux controversy is ridiculous and am merely illustrating what happens when you take their argument to its bitter end. Oh, and the DaVinci Code is blasphemy. But you don’t see Christians out firebombing embassies or anything.