http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_11155837

Students protest, say Ute nickname breeding racism
Response » U. has long history of supporting American Indians.

By Ben Fulton

The Salt Lake Tribune

Shouting chants of "We want scholarships!" and "Pay the bill, Chris Hill!"
the 14 students marched through the University of Utah campus Thursday to
protest what they allege is the U.'s lackluster support of American Indian
students while its athletic programs benefit from the Ute name.

Hill is the school's athletic director.

"Too many of us question the motives of the university," said Joel Arvizo,
a doctoral student of Navajo and Chicano descent, speaking through an
electric bullhorn. "The U. has treated us with cold indifference for far
too long."

But Octavio Villalpando, the U.'s associate vice president for diversity,
rejects such charges. "In its 150 year history, the U. has never invested
as many human and financial resources in its support of the Native American
community, students and faculty," Villalpando said.

While debate over the school's trademarked use of the words "Ute" and
"Runnin' Utes" and its use of American Indian imagery, including the
drum-and-feathers logo, isn't new, protesters were irate over several
recent events. They were unhappy that the U. gave up $2.1 million in
federal grant money marked for teacher training programs for American
Indian students last spring.

Last month, vendors hawked T-shirts before the U. football game against
Texas Christian University that depicted a large-nosed American Indian
roasting the TCU mascot of a horned frog, an animal revered by Utes and
other American Indians. BYU students displayed posters reading "back to the
reservation" and the "Trail of Tears" during a women's volleyball match,
while some fans attending the U.-BYU football game dressed in war paint and
headdresses.

Such incidents, they say, demonstrate how the Ute trademark invites
ridicule and disrespect from fellow students and breeds mockery and racism
at athletic events.

Not all students of native background share the protesters' anger and
disappointment. "I know some American Indian students are uncomfortable
about being singled out in discussion of these issues," said Lena Judee,
program coordinator for American Indians in the U.'s Center for Ethnic
Student Affairs and a Navajo tribal member.

And there are questions about what the university can and should do to help
American Indian students in light of a 2003 Supreme Court decision barring
universities from awarding financial assistance based on race. At the same
time, a memorandum of understanding between the Northern Ute Indian Tribe
and the U. seeks cooperative programs in exchange for use of the Ute
trademark. While not legally binding, the matriculation of more Utes and
other American Indians, as well as "educational programs that accelerate
the development of ... tribal human resources," are mentioned in the memo.

While the university regretted giving up the $2.1 million in federal
grants, it could not afford to provide $1.5 million in matching funds for
10 students as required to keep the federal money. Instead a director of
American Indian teacher education in the college of education was hired to
affirm the U.'s commitment to graduating more American Indian educators.

"It made far more sense to us to invest in that goal through those means,
rather than rely on federal money that comes and goes," said Villalpando.
He also noted the U.'s recent American Indian faculty hire in the
department of ethnic studies, along with plans for another in fall 2010.

Villalpando said the U. has revised its vendor approval process in the wake
of the T-shirt incident. He also wrote a public letter of apology to the
American Indian community, expressing the university's "collective
repudiation of this racist depiction."

The university abandoned its "Crimson Warrior" mascot in 1995 and replaced
it with the red-tailed hawk "Swoop." And U. spokeswoman Coralie Alder said
the drum-and-feathers logo is being phased out in favor of the U block. "We
know there are some Native American students who don't like the use of this
name and imagery but we have permission from the governing body of the
Northern Ute tribe. We're listening to students' concerns and doing our
best to raise sensitivities."

Arvizo said the agreement between the U. and the Northern Ute tribe over
the trademark ignores the disrespect American Indian students endure
because of its use. "We are trying to bring to light the multiple realities
of the Ute trademark," said Arvizo, who wants it discontinued.

Other protesters said it's time the U. either dispense with the Ute
trademark or make good on the memorandum. Amie Hammond, a Ute tribal member
from Colorado who joined in Thursday's protest, said the issue of the Ute
trademark may be more sensitive to American Indian students from
reservations than more urbanized students, she said. "I'm almost scared to
say anything about that, because I could offend people. But it's like
seeing your culture used as a cartoon."