This week, Hinckley-Finlayson School District Board officials voted unanimously to disallow a Native American student drum group to perform at their high school graduation ceremony on May 24th. The ruling garnered statewide attention. Chandra Colvin has more.
Chandra Colvin: On Monday, May 13th, The Hinckley-Finlayson School Board voted to limit presentations and performances by extracurricular student groups at its 2024 graduation ceremony and moving forward. This includes the high school’s Native American Student Association, or NASA, drum group
Mary Davis, a member of the Bad River Band of Ojibwe, is a Special Education teacher at the Hinckley-Finlayson School District. Davis told Minnesota Native News that in 2023, the district invited the NASA drum group to perform. They were set to perform again at this year’s ceremony until the school board’s decision removed them from the program.
Mary Davis: The school board never specifically approached our Indian Ed. Coordination Team or Native American Student Association to make that change.
There was never any formal communication from the school district to AIPAC, communicating that there were going to be requests to change having drum group at graduation.
Our students are devastated. They’re hurt. They’re traumatized. They’re affected in ways that they can’t find words for. They don’t understand why they would not be allowed to drum and sing when it was– the drum was invited by the school to come to commencement last year. And so it’s shocking that really right before commencement and graduation this year, we’re being asked not to sing.
CC: In a public statement, the school board said the decision was not made lightly. Among other reasons, the district stated that they wanted to remain respectful of time for those attending commencement and not favor any particular extracurricular group – keeping the focus on the graduating students. The district’s attorney’s public statement noted the Establishment Clause, which provides constitutional separation of church and state; but the statement did not directly state that the district believes the NASA drum group to be religious.
In a statement provided to Minnesota Native News by Hinckley-Finalyson’s School District Superintendent, Brian Masterson, the district said, [They are] QUOTE committed to work with the drum group to identify an alternate forum for the group to perform, and for their families and interested community members to attend and support them. END QUOTE
Davis, who is also an advisor to NASA, said her students do not understand or feel understood or supported by the statements put out by their district’s administration.
MD: In the sentiment in the student body is that they’re being segregated. And tucked off to a corner and that there’s confusion about why band and choir get to sing, but they don’t. There’s confusion about the language in the recommendation. The drum group was referred to as a drum line, religious.
The establishment clause was cited in the recommendation and that’s for separation of church and state. Being Native American isn’t a religious group, it’s a cultural identity. And so it needs to be separated from that train of thought.
The word extracurricular was used repeatedly in the recommendation. And the feeling in with the drum group and the students in NASA is that they’re not an extracurricular activity. They’re not a group you can just go join because you want to try something out.
CC: When the decision was made, students and community members spoke about the harm removing the drum group would cause the Native Community, while supporters of the NASA drum group demonstrated outside the building.
Davis estimates 30% of the district are Native American students and believes decisions like this affect student behavior and could have other long-term effects on those students.
MD: The Native American Student Association is the largest student group in Hinckley-Finlayson School District. I really think that speaks volume as to the inclusive environment in that space that’s been created.
My fear is that students are going to come to school in hypervigilance. In fight or flight. That’s going to increase, you know, mental health issues and struggles. That’s going to increase, um, you know, negative behaviors, whether that’s not going to classes, absenteeism, being tardy, that sort of thing.
CC: Hinckley-Finlayson District administrators and school board members did not respond to Minnesota Native News’ request for an interview about this story.
For Minnesota Native News, I’m Chandra Colvin.
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