In the Black Hills of North Dakota, an Indian war rages on.

Since 1930, the University of North Dakota has been the “Fighting Sioux.”  The nickname was a reference to the local native culture, and was resonant with another, more famous UND, “The Fighting Irish.”  It has proven useful in songs and chants, since it rhymes with lots of everyday words like “Screw” and “You.”  (Rowdy students love that.) The Fighting Sioux have lived up to their name, at least in hockey; they have skated to seven NCAA Division 1 national championships.

But then, in 2000, the war drums of political correctness started thumping.  In that year, 21 Native American-related programs and departments at the school issued a statement denouncing the name.  They were supported by the Standing Rock Sioux, one of the two largest native councils in the state.  In response, the next year, UND alum Ralph Engelstad donated $100 million – one of the largest donations ever made to a university – for the construction of a new hockey arena.  His one condition:  that the University NEVER change the school nickname.  The school took the money and built “The Ralph,” perhaps the finest hockey venue in North America, complete with leather seats, granite walls, and thousands of Fighting Sioux logos and references that would be almost impossible to remove.

That didn’t impress the NCAA.  In 2005, it declared that schools could no longer use Indian names or imagery, unless they gained consent from the tribe. UND protested the decision, lost, and then sued.  In 2007, UND and the NCAA settled out of court, with UND getting a three-year extension to gain native support.  And they got it, sort of.  In April of 2009, the state’s OTHER native council, the Spirit Lake Sioux, voted in favor of keeping the name.  But their fellow Sioux at Standing Rock refused to call a new vote.  In November, a judge ruled that the North Dakota Board of Higher Education could force a name change.  But then, the Spirit Lake Sioux appealed to the State Supreme Court, a process which usually takes seven months.  So, just last night, the Board of Higher Education requested the State Supreme Court rule on the appeal within 30 days.

And so we come to the final battle.  Can the folks from Spirit Lake move Standing Rock?  Or will Standing Rock live up to its name?  Either way, after 80 years, the fate of the “Fighting Sioux” will ultimately be determined by the fighting Sioux.