BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A group of American Indians who want the University of North Dakota to keep its Fighting Sioux nickname hope to put the issue to voters.
Members of the Spirit Lake Sioux tribe who back the nickname say they plan to gather signatures to amend the state’s constitution to require that the school use the moniker. Their lawyer, Reed Soderstrom, said Thursday that he hoped such a move would end arguments about the nickname “once and for all.”
The school wants to shed its 81-year-old nickname after a drawn-out dispute with the NCAA. The NCAA says the name and the school’s American Indian logo are offensive to Native Americans.
North Dakota lawmakers voted earlier this month to allow UND to get rid of the moniker.
