(Spirit Lake)– The Spirit Lake School Board voted Monday evening to keep the Indian mascot, but the decision wasn’t unanimous. 12 members of the public addressed the board on the matter, which was resurrected after the district received a letter from the Spirit Lake tribe of North Dakota demanding the Indian mascot be changed, saying it is offensive. Among those addressing the board was Sandy Lamori who is a resident of the Spirit Lake School District and is a member of the Ponca tribe of Nebraska…
“I’m a proud native American from the Northern Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and I feel like a chief with a headdress is an honor. It would be different if it was cartoon like and making fun of Indians. But I think it would be horrible if they made us change the logo.”
District patron Kate Mendenhall was among those calling on the board to drop the Indian mascot…
“To many indigenous peoples, American Indian mascots do not honor them, and it’s important that we make an action today out of respect for them. We should not feel comfortable continuing to use a mascot that causes others to feel objectified, demeaned, and stereotyped.”
School Board member Jerome Mouw, who was recently appointed to fill a vacancy on the board, said he surveyed 46 people about the mascot issue. He says none of them were in favor of changing the mascot.
“I didn’t get a single person who said change the logo, and I guess that’s who I need to represent because that’s what I’ve heard. I think the other option is to take it to a vote which of course will cost money, and I am quite sure just, again, from the representation that I’ve gotten, I know how that vote will turn out.”
Fellow board member Greta Gruys said she wanted to hear more input from the public before making a decision…
“We all agree that our Indian mascot is truly not intended to offend. However, when you leave the insulation of this community, our Indian mascot is viewed as a symbol of prejudice, intolerance, and discrimination. The amount of time our administrative team spends contending with this issue is a drain of resources and quite frankly, it becomes an unwelcome distraction. And finally, most importantly, the native American people have told us that using the Indian mascot is not an honor or sign of respect and they have repeatedly asked us to change it. It is for these reasons, even though I hold in great regard our Spirit Lake Indian mascot, I would like to see more community input and conversations before we proceed with any long lasting action on this issue.”
Mouw made the motion to keep the Indian mascot. It was seconded by board member Sonya Hamm. It passed on a four to one vote, with Gruys voting in opposition.
