Native student athletes receive racist insults

For as long as any living person can remember, racist verbal attacks against Native student athletes have been common at school sponsored sporting events in Indian Country. Sunny Red Bear is Director of Racial Equity at the NDN Collective, an indigenous-led organization in Rapid City, SD, that works to empower Native peoples. Red Bear says, “I’ve talked to multiple mothers and fathers whose children are experiencing racism in schools … by being called the ‘Prairie N-word.’”

Shawn Traversie, the father of a Native student athlete at Tiospaye Topa High School (TTHS) in La Plant, SD, has taken a public stand and is demanding action after a recent incident at Newell High School in Newell, SD. Traversie wrote a letter to the Tiospaye Topa School Board which was published in its entirety in the Eagle Butte, SD, local press, challenging the Board to adopt a zero tolerance policy on racism. He also advocated for additional preventive and deterrent measures.

Traversie said, “We (Natives and non-natives alike) are all working toward the common good. We all live here together and there needs to be unity. We are cultivating young people who must live together. …Teaching young people accountability is a big thing. We (adults) must encourage awareness and mutual respect.”

Dated February 11, 2023, and addressed to Mike Bowker, Chairman of the Tiospaye Topa School Board, Traversie’s letter referenced an incident at a basketball game on Saturday, February 11, 2023, in Newell, SD, “where our children were attacked with racial insults that showed blatant hatred and racism.”

Traversie requests an emergency board meeting to address the issue and recommends not only a Zero Tolerance Policy on Racism but also prescribes penalties for violating the policy. He also calls on SD Governor Noem to “sanction the Newell School from all athletic activities until they take appropriate actions that is satisfactory to our students and require all public schools to adopt Zero Tolerance Policies on Racism.”

Third, he wants the school’s lawyer to demand the United States Attorney’s Office open an investigation on the Newell school for hate and racism.

Traversie ends his letter with the statement, “Racism in sports against our children has been happening for far too long, enough is enough.”

As of press time, more than six weeks since the letter was delivered, Traversie says the only response he has received from the school board is vague and noncommittal: “the matter is under investigation.”

For validation and precedent, Traversie need look no further than SD’s border with North Dakota. As reported by the Bismarck, ND, Tribune, racist comments made recently at two separate ND high school basketball games have sparked broad discussion on sports conduct and what may be a deeper race issue in North Dakota.

These two incidents prompted Rep. Jayme Davis, D-Rolette, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, to propose House Concurrent Resolution (HCR) 3022 which calls for a legislative study to clarify the role of education officials, school districts and athletics regulators in promoting proper spectator behavior at sporting events, as well as consequences for violating those expectations.

“Now if these were the only two incidents that ever happened in North Dakota, I wouldn’t be here,” Davis testified. “Unfortunately, it has been happening for decades.” In an interview, Davis said she experienced racist comments when she played basketball in the early 1990s.

Davis said that she is disappointed by the response, or lack thereof, from administrators and referees when these events occur. “Why are we sitting on the sidelines and saying, ‘I didn’t see that” or ‘I didn’t hear that,’” Davis asked. “No, the whole gym heard it, it’s on video.”

The ND House passed House Concurrent Resolution 3022; the measure now goes to the Senate. If the resolution passes there’s no guarantee it will be selected for a study.

Four parents of two ND student athletes offered testimony in support of HCR 3022. Referencing an incident of racial taunting on January 31, 2023, during a high school basketball game, their recorded testimony declares, “The emotional distress suffered by our sons cannot be overlooked or dismissed. The loud chants of vehement racist taunting will have lasting emotional effects on these student athletes.

“It is the duty of NDHSAA (North Dakota High School Activities Association), and school administrators to cultivate safe and harassment-free environments for student athletes. Note that both these (targeted Native) student athletes…held themselves to their highest standard and never interacted with the crowd during this racial harassment and verbal abuse.

“…policy changes are needed at NDHSAA including, but not limited to, implementing a zero tolerance policy for all students and fans that directly addresses and combats all incidences of hate and racism and which contains serious sanctions for those involved in such actions. Further, there should be permanent representation from Reservation school districts on the NDHSAA Board of Directors.”

In response to the controversy, the NDHSAA has updated its code of conduct. The new rules prohibit the use of profane language, including racist remarks, during games with the penalty of immediate removal from the activity if violated.

Spirit Lake Tribal Chairman Douglas Yankton Sr. doesn’t feel they go far enough. He also wants more transparency in how the incident was handled. His appeal follows one earlier this month by Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Chairman Ryman LeBeau in South Dakota. Both said the nonwhite ND players are of Lakota heritage.

On a letter to NDHSAA officials, Yankton said the tribe “seeks to express extreme disdain for what can only be described as hate-fueled and racist conduct.”

The United Tribes of North Dakota, a group representing all five tribal nations that share geography with the state, passed a resolution earlier this month that also called for a zero-tolerance policy that would include training, “clearly defined rules and regulations,” and “severe” punishments. The tribes also called for “proactive measures” to help prevent acts of racism.

LeBeau’s Feb. 4, 2023, statement demanded that “all involved Public School students and administrators, including referees, be held accountable for their lack of action and failure to uphold policy that resulted in these children continuing to be harassed and taunted throughout the entirety of a NDHSAA sanctioned event.”

Jamestown ND School District Superintendent Robert Lech made the following statement to the press, “”The Jamestown School District shares the expectation to offer a safe environment, in school and in competition, that is free from harassment and discrimination.

“The (racist taunting) events of Jan. 31 did not meet our expectations as a school district, they did not meet the expectations of our community, and they did not meet the expectations of the public,” he said. “For that we sincerely apologize and assure that we have, and will continue to, properly investigate, ensure accountability based on that impartial investigation, assess our current policies and practices, and strive to take a proactive approach to building our collective capacity so we can learn from this incident. We know we must do better, and we know that we can.”

 

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