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A mountain 35 miles southeast of Eugene, OR has been officially renamed to something less controversial.
As KLCC’s Brian Bull explains, “Swastika Mountain” is no more.
The new name for the roughly 4,200 foot high peak is “Mount Halo.”
The name is derived from Kalapuya Chief Halito, whose village was 20 miles west of the mountain.
David Lewis is an assistant professor of anthropology and ethnic and Indigenous studies at Oregon State University, and a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde.
He says while some people have defended the swastika as a universal symbol for many cultures, its more recent associations are troubling.
“The symbol really has negative connotations from World War II, and it’s use as a symbol of fascism. And so we need to at times revisit names that have been given to the land, and to rivers, and towns, and maybe replace those with things that have more resonance with today’s society.”
The U.S. Board of Geographic Names approved the name change at its April 13 meeting and it takes effect immediately.
Lewis says the entire process began a year and a half ago.
Robert DesRosier (Photo: National Tribal Emergency Management Council)
Voters on the Blackfeet Nation have elected a replacement for a council member who recently resigned following his arrest.
Montana Public Radio’s Aaron Bolton has more.
Blackfeet Disaster and Emergency Services Director Robert DesRosier won the election and will take over the Browning seat on the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council.
The Blackfeet Nation held a special election Tuesday to fill the vacant post of former chairman Tim Davis.
Tribal council members last year voted to remove Davis as chairman after nine people, including family members, were arrested at Davis’ home on drug related charges. Davis continued to serve on the council.
Davis was arrested in March for disorderly conduct and threatening a public official.
The council planned to hold an expulsion hearing, but Davis resigned shortly after the hearing was announced.
(Photo courtesy: Sherry Johnson)
After the final public comment hearing for South Dakota’s proposed social studies standards, the state board of education standards voted to approve the proposal – though strong opposition remains.
South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s C.J. Keene has more.
After well over a thousand opposing comments from South Dakotans, the embattled standards proposal sailed to passage on a 5-2 vote.
From the onset, the proposal was panned by the state’s education and Native communities.
Sherry Johnson is the education director of the Sisseton Wahpeton tribe.
She says many are unhappy with the role the Native community is slated with.
“For a great part, all of Native Americans are portrayed as warlike, and Native Americans are made to feel embarrassed about that role – that’s when Gov. Noem says she doesn’t want divisive, but that is itself divisive to Native American people. The right to vote is missing for Native Americans, the Native American Religious Act – you know that was only passed in (19)78. These things are huge.”
Testimony like that swayed some board members.
Board president Terry Nebelsick announced his opposition at the end of the hearing in Pierre.
“By statute these hearings are put in place to determine if the citizens of South Dakota have any concerns with the standards recommended by the revision committee that the statute indicates should be made up of South Dakota educators and professionals. These hearings should not be a debate with point-counterpoint. There is no win-win in this process. The longer its gone on it’s become obvious it will become a lose-lose endeavor.”
Despite the opposition, board member Phylis Heineman was unmoved.
“I have learned personally so much going through all of this. It has been – I found these standards very exciting. When I read through some of this information – first of all I gotta thank the Governor for starting the conversation.”
Within minutes of passage, a representative from Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD)’s camp sent a release applauding the passage of the standards.
Implementation of the new standards will begin in June and take place over the next two years.
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