So many things to catch up on!

Hi Friends,

Yes, it's been over a month since my last post, I'm really sorry! I've had some family stuff going on, and was back in California for a bit, and have been trying to catch up since then. I have an inbox that is bursting with great (if by great I mean maddening and cringe-worthy) tips, so I'll try to work through them in the coming weeks.

Big things happening in the news that we didn't get to talk about (tomorrow we'll look at some other more appropriation-y things):

• CSU Long Beach published a horrible, racist rant about the campus powwow (that's the image above, click to make it bigger). In response to criticism by Native students and others, they then gave the worst non-apology ever. This was right on the tail of the UCLA "Asians in the library" debacle, which got tons of national attention. Where's the press for this incident? Check out these summary posts by Rob over at Newspaper Rock for more thoughts on the issue.

• Pentagon prosecutors compared the Seminole tribe of Florida to al Qaeda in a war filing, reaching all the way back to the Indian Wars in the 1800's to set a precedent for ongoing issues with Guantanamo. The comparison is not only offensive, but factually wrong, and the Seminoles have demanded an apology. 

• We can't expect much from Fox News, but "reporter" John Stossel takes the cake with his rant on "freeloading" American Indians. There's a quick clip here, but if anyone has a link to the full segment, let me know.This seriously makes my blood boil. Why don't we talk about the reasons Native people are forced to rely on government aid? Oh, you know, like, continuing colonial oppression?

•  The North Dakota state legislature passed a bill that orders UND to keep the Fighting Sioux nickname that they voted to retire a few months ago. You read that right. The state government ordered the school to keep the racist image. Yay government! But it looks like UND is moving forward with getting rid of the mascot anyway. 

Thanks to everyone who's been posting all the fantastic links over on the Native Appropriations Facebook page, definitely check it out if you haven't been over there recently!

As always, keep the tips coming, nativeappropriations@gmail.com

Wisconsin Bans Indian Mascots!

As of this week, schools in Wisconsin using race-based mascots can be fined up to $1,000 a day. This law has been a long time coming, the first form of it was presented to the state over 30 years ago. The way the law works is that parties can submit complaints to the state, and after a hearing, if the school is found to be in violation, they can face fines of up to $1,000 per day if they continue to use the image and name.

This is awesome news, and I can only hope that this is signaling a change that many other states will follow! Yay Wisconsin!

Read the whole article here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127987743

AK Programming note: I thought this was a fitting time to talk about Wisconsin, since I'm actually at the airport, en route to Wisconsin. I'm headed to Lawrence University, which is hosting College Horizons, an incredible program for Native high school students to learn about the college application process. I'm an alum of the program, and this is my third time returning as faculty. If you know of any Native high schoolers, encourage them to apply for next summer! They also host a graduate school version called Graduate Horizons for those of you a bit older. Seriously one of the best programs for Native students out there. 

(Thanks Mom and Katie for sending the article!)