By
LEE WILLIAMS
Argus Leader
published: 10/17/01
Watertown
activist files civil rights complaints with federal agency
A Watertown-based activist has filed federal civil rights complaints against
four South Dakota schools over their use of Native American nicknames, mascots
and imagery.
Betty Ann Gross, who heads the Minority Resource Center, filed racial
discrimination complaints with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of
Civil Rights earlier this month against the Sisseton, Woonsocket, Estelline and
Watertown districts.
Gross, 49, has led a campaign for the past several months trying to rid South
Dakota's schools of Indian mascots and nicknames. Along the way, she has
traveled the state, holding sparsely attended meetings with school officials in
many South Dakota towns.
She threatened to sue the districts in federal court if an agreement on the
issue wasn't found.
More complaints may be coming, she said Tuesday.
"Next week, we'll contact Iroquois, Wessington, Wakpala and Sioux Falls,
and if there's no agreement, we'll file against them, too," Gross said.
"This has not been easy for anyone. It's involved a lot of work."
Rodger Murphey, a Washington, D.C.-based spokesman for the Department of
Education, confirmed that a complaint has been filed against Sisseton - where
the nickname is Redmen - but he was unable to contact the civil rights
investigator in Kansas City who holds the paperwork for the other three schools.
Woonsocket Superintendent Mike Elsberry confirmed the filing against his school.
He was notified Tuesday morning.
"I just found out about it today," said Elsberry, whose school also
uses the Redmen nickname. "I'm surprised, but not that surprised. We
understood it was coming, but we did have a task force working on it."
Rick Melmer, superintendent of the Watertown district - where homecoming
ceremonies depicting two tribes have been criticized - was prepared for the
complaint.
"Locally, the feeling is that people would just as soon see this happen and
get it over with," said Melmer, who has been critical of Gross' methods.
"People are ready for this to come to a head. We're ready to determine
where we need to go and move on."
Ensuring equal access
The mission of the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights is to ensure
equal access to education and to promote educational excellence through its
enforcement of civil rights laws.
The office can enforce five civil rights statutes at any institution that
receives federal money.
A complaint can be filed by anyone who thinks that a school has discriminated
against someone based upon race, color, national origin, sex and age.
As in Gross' case, the person filing the complaint need not be the victim of the
discrimination but may file a complaint on behalf of a person or group.
Murphey said Gross' complaint is in the evaluation stage. His office has several
criteria that must be met before investigators are dispatched to the schools.
"First, we determine if the state has a similar complaint filed against the
school district," he said. "If the state is investigating the issue,
we will not interfere."
No such investigation is under way by the state of South Dakota.
The Office of Civil Rights then determines if any other litigation is pending
against the school and confirms that the alleged discrimination occurred within
180 days of the filing of the complaint.
"If we do open an investigation, it does not mean that we have determined
there is discrimination," Murphey said. "It only means that we have
jurisdiction."
If an investigation is launched, it can involve on-site visits by Education
Department investigators.
Potential outcomes vary.
The office could issue a letter saying no violations were found, or it could
mediate a solution between the parties.
"The most stringent? When we investigate a civil rights complaint and find
that a school district is out of compliance, we send a letter giving them 30
days to comply," Murphey explained. "But, if we find they are out of
compliance and they don't agree to change, ultimately they can lose their
federal funding."
That last step is rare, he said.
Effect on districts
In Woonsocket, federal money constitutes 20 percent of the district's budget.
If federal funds are lost, Elsberry said Title One reading programs would be
some of the first cuts made. "We have a reading recovery program that
intensifies the reading experience for first-graders. It would be the first to
go," he said. "It's just one of those things. I understand where she's
coming from. ... It would hurt, but we would do something else, if we have
to."
Melmer said Watertown has never had a federal civil rights complaint.
"I've never been through anything like this before. We'll learn how this
all works as we go along."
Federal funds make up 5 percent of the Watertown School District's budget.
"It's not a large portion," Melmer said. "The lion's share is
from state and local efforts."
Estelline CEO Dennis Rieckman declined to comment until he reads the complaint.
The school uses the Redmen nickname.
The Wakpala student body and school board are 100 percent Lakota and have no
plans to change.
"Our school board already took action on this, based on community
consensus," Superintendent Susan Smit said. "We want to remain the
Wakpala Sioux. At this point, that's the board's official action."
In Sioux Falls, Washington High School Principal Carla Middlen said she has
worked with American Indian Services Executive Director Art War Bonnett to come
to some kind of resolution about the Warriors nickname.
The school has said it plans to paint over a chief's head mural in the gymnasium
and has tried to eliminate other Native American references.
"We asked for ideas to replace the mural during the (Northern Plains)
Tribal Arts show," Middlen said. "There was one entry that we know
of."
The potential loss of federal funding is a concern, but Middlen said her school
should get some credit for the steps it has taken toward change.
"I guess there's always some concern about the funding. But what we're
doing has the backing of Native Americans in Sioux Falls and other parts of the
state."