Local activists are calling for racial equity training\u00a0for a South Dakota\u00a0school district after its high school\u2019s rodeo club cancelled a “slave auction\u201d fundraiser amid social media backlash.<\/p>\n
\u201cIgnorance is one thing but straight-up blatant racism when you know the history of racism in our state is another,\u201d said Julian Beaudion, a Black police officer who is part of the South Dakota Coalition for Justice and Equity and interim director of the\u00a0South Dakota African American History Museum. \u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s any excuse for what they did.\u201d<\/p>\n
For years, Faith High School’s rodeo club members offered their labor for a set amount of time to bidders in exchange for donations at an\u00a0annual fundraiser. The Washington Post reported the Rodeo Club’s adult adviser called the event space to cancel the event. This year\u2019s auction in Faith, South Dakota, was scheduled for Monday.<\/p>\n
Donations fund student cowgirls and cowboys competing in rodeo competitions, public performance contests featuring events like bronco riding and calf roping.<\/p>\n
The Faith School District’s superintendent and the South Dakota High School Rodeo Association did not respond to multiple requests for comment.<\/p>\n
The South Dakota High School Rodeo Association said it doesn’t\u00a0have any knowledge about the high school\u2019s fundraising efforts and individual\u00a0rodeo clubs and schools are responsible for their own fundraising, the Rapid City Journal reported. A Faith School District receptionist told the Journal the fundraiser, which includes a pancake supper and a pie auction,\u00a0is not run by the school.<\/p>\n
April 15: <\/strong>Students of color \u2018auctioned\u2019 in \u2019Slave Trade\u2019 group message by Texas high schoolers<\/span><\/p>\n Mock slave auctions, racist lessons: <\/strong>How US history class often traumatizes, dehumanizes Black students<\/span><\/p>\n Slave\/branding auctions are a \u201cstaple event\u201d for many high school rodeo clubs across the state, according to South Dakota Voices for Justice. The concept of a \u201cslave auction\u201d for fundraising purposes has existed in South Dakota since at least 2008, when the Belle Fourche School District held a slave auction fundraiser. There have long been calls across the state to stop labeling these events “slave auctions,”\u00a0but the name stuck in Faith High School.<\/p>\n For Beaudion, the \u201cslave auction\u201d in Faith called back memories of people burning swastikas in parking lots and KKK recruitment flyers found at schools over the years in South Dakota.<\/p>\n \u201cI would say it\u2019s a slap in the face for me as a Black man, but we\u2019ve dealt with racial issues in the state for a long time,\u201d he said. \u201cI can\u2019t say that this was surprising.\u201d<\/p>\n He said the \u201cslave\/branding auction\u201d harkens back to \u201chistory with the slave being put on the auction block or branded as runaway slaves.” Beaudion called the event name \u201cextremely traumatic\u201d for the Black community.<\/p>\n Just over 2% of the South Dakota’s population is Black while 84% is white, according to the latest census data. With just 363 residents, Faith\u2019s population is 96% white and has no individuals listed as Black, according to latest census data.<\/p>\n After the event was cancelled, Beaudion said he donated to the club, wanting the controversy to be a teaching moment rather than derailing the club\u2019s fundraising plans. He also created a hashtag called\u00a0#KeepingTheFaith to ask those who were critical of the name of the event to also make a donation to the rodeo club \u201cin the name of educating the students about why the name should be changed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to lead with empathy and compassion,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve come to a crossroads. If they choose to do the right thing, we can all move forward and have this conversation together.\u201d<\/p>\n Brianne Garr, a Sioux Falls resident who contacted school district officials demanding the event\u2019s name be changed, said she felt bad the event was cancelled.\u00a0Still, she said she is hurt by people denying the harm the name caused.<\/p>\n \u201cThat wasn\u2019t my intent,\u201d she said. \u201cFundraising for children\u2019s programs is great. All we wanted was a name change.\u201d<\/p>\n Part of making amends would be accepting the free racial equity training the South Dakota African American Museum has offered to the district, Beaudion said. The offer stands, he said, despite having received “absolutely no response” from district officials.<\/p>\n South Dakota Voices for Justice called for educators, administrators and students at all South Dakota school districts to do racial sensitivity training. It has also reached out to board members of the South Dakota High School Rodeo Association\u00a0to demand a public apology and that they undergo training from the museum, according to a statement.<\/p>\n Social media discussion over the name has been heated with many mocking those calling for change as being sensitive and others offering new names\u00a0like \u201cWrangler for Hire.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJust because you did it 50 years ago doesn\u2019t mean it wasn\u2019t wrong at the time,\u201d Beaudion said. \u201cIt\u2019s always been wrong. We\u2019ve been fighting against this for years. We\u2019re just now getting this attention.\u201d<\/p>\n Many people still don\u2019t see what is wrong with the name, said state Rep. Linda Ruba, a Democrat.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s just such a lack of understanding on some people\u2019s part to walk in another person\u2019s shoes,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to chip away a little at a time at these mindsets through conversation, but you can\u2019t force someone to think one way or another,\u201d Duba added. \u201cI just hope this controversy encourages people to stop and rethink.\u201d<\/p>\n