Where’s the Honor? Attitudes Toward the “Fighting Sioux” Nickname and Logo

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to explore support for Native American sports nicknames. A survey of students at the University of North Dakota, a school with substantial Native student enrollment, was conducted to determine support or opposition to the school’s “Fighting Sioux” nickname and logo. A majority of Native American and a minority of White students thought that the nickname conveyed disrespect and argued for change. Although the study was situated within Bonilla-Silva’s theory of “new racism,” the results indicated that a frame of color-blind racism provided an inadequate explanation of attitudes toward these nicknames.