MOORHEAD -- I am saddened and disgusted by the continual disrespect that is shown to our tribal governments by disrespecting our elected officials and ignoring their resolutions.
I recently read a couple of things that gave me hope. I read an article in the Dakota Student that the chancellor of the North Dakota University System is calling for an end to UND's nickname and logo issue sooner than the three-year deadline set by the lawsuit. I read the column by Lloyd Omdahl, a former fervent Fighting Sioux supporter, describing the merits of discontinuing the use of the nickname and logo in a timely manner.
My hopes were high, and I had a moment where I wished I was still at UND, to see and be a part of this change. Then came the inevitable slap in the face in the form of the flier announcing the "Unveiling of Tribal Flags Ceremony," in which our elders and veterans will be taken advantage of once again by the officials of Ralph Engelstad Arena.
I am the former assistant director of American Indian Student Services at UND, where I worked for 15 years. I am now on the faculty at Minnesota State University Moorhead. When I applied for this position, I had not been searching for a job but venting to a friend that some days I felt like I just couldn't deal with this issue anymore and that UND's continued use of the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo was the only reason I would consider leaving my job.
This was a job in which the staff had become a family to me, and the students were like my children. The very next day, I got the announcement for this position in my inbox. As I pondered whether to apply, the Fighting Sioux issue got uglier and uglier, and the position at Minnesota State University Moorhead looked better and better.
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Consequently, the Fighting Sioux issue was the reason I left a job that I loved at UND.
As I begin my second year at Minnesota State University Moorhead, I can honestly say that I have never regretted my decision to leave UND. Every article I read and every newscast I see regarding the nickname and logo issue is an affirmation of my decision to leave UND. Every time I set foot on this campus, I feel comfortable, welcome and even respected by everyone I meet. I am so grateful to work at an institution where the entire community can celebrate Dragonpride Fridays by wearing our logo and colors, where our general education curriculum is called the Dragoncore and where no racial or ethnic group is exploited and dehumanized for the sake of money and athletics.
Donna Brown
Brown is assistant professor of counseling and coordinator of student affairs at Minnesota State University Moorhead.
