University of North Dakota students protest offensive T-shirts
American Indian students at the University of North Dakota came together in mid-May to protest offensive T-shirts worn by their peers, according to the Native Sun News.
Students photographed themselves wearing T-shirts that depict an American Indian drinking from a beer bong with the words “Siouxper Drunk” emblazoned on the front. The “Fighting Sioux” logo was retired in 2012 due to impending NCAA sanctions over its controversial depiction of American Indian, according to ESPN.
“The ‘drunken Indian’ caricature is one of the worst stereotypes about Native people that there is,” said Ruth Hopkins, a writer for LastRealIndians.com.
Native Americans
Native Americans Open Up About Prejudice in Montana NIOT Summit
Native Americans in Montana still face discrimination every day, said attendees at the Not In Our Town “Summit on Hate” in Billings, MN last week, hosted by NIOT Billings. Sometimes the racist attacks come in the form of “war chants” at high school football games. Other times, it’s the derogatory comments about government assistance all natives supposedly get.
“I’ve been waiting for my ‘free Indian money’ my whole life. It doesn’t happen,” said Luella Brien, a member of the Crow tribe. Brien and others related their experiences at the summit. Read more on Indian Country Today.
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