The Blackhawk and the Pow Wow cafeterias may soon cease to exist as students know them.

The names of the cafeterias, which reside on the Holmes Student Center’s first floor, are under fire from some of NIU’s Native American students.

Native Americans Together Insuring Our Nation’s Sovereignty (NATIONS) is asking that the cafeteria names be changed because the terms “Blackhawk” and “pow wow” are both sacred and religious to Native Americans, said NATIONS President Jenny Meness.

The group is collecting signatures from NIU students who agree with their position.

“What we want to do is educate the students as to why we think the names ‘pow wow’ and ‘Blackhawk’ are derogatory and why they shouldn’t be used,” Meness said. “We don’t want to jump in and protest it because then nobody would understand. We want everyone to understand what is going on and what ‘Blackhawk’ and ‘pow wow’ actually mean to us.”

A pow wow is “a time of dancing, renewal and purification” and Blackhawk is the name of a prominent American Indian nation, Meness added.

She said that the names do not honor Native Americans as some people might believe.

“If we called the cafeteria ‘The Holy Sacrament,’ how would they respond to it then?” Meness said. “That (the cafeteria) is not a pow wow, so you can’t call it a pow wow,” she said.

Meness also explained that the cafeteria names are only a small part of a larger, national problem.

A lot of the Indian names used today are obviously not honorable, Meness said. She noted the origin of the term “redskin” from colonial times, which was a reference to Indian skins brought in by pioneers as bounty to trading posts.

“Redskins is a direct reference to the genocide of the Native American,” Meness said.

NATIONS Secretary Karen-Ann Moisant said that although she did not know for certain the number of students who have signed their support to the group’s petition, things were looking good.

“I’m pleased with the signatures we’ve gotten so far because anyone who stopped by and talked to us signed—it was the people who walked by that didn’t,” she said.

Some students appear to be in support of NATIONS‘ request.

“I think it’s a legitimate concern because nobody’s taken in consideration how they’ve been treated since we came here,” said Jim Buccheri, a sophomore. “It’s a matter of pride. Their pride’s been taken away and they have a right to take it back. It’s a small step to reclaiming themselves.”

Andy Reed, a sophomore English major, agreed that the names should be changed, but questioned what purpose it would achieve.

“I think that if the Native American population on this campus is offended by the names then we should change them, but I don’t think that as an attempt at social reform that it’s going to have much of an effect,” he said.

John Ferrans, a senior geology major, also agreed with the right of the Native American students to have the names changed.

“We’re a land considering ourself to have liberty and justice for all,” he said. “We try to treat every other ethnic group that way—why not the native American? We don’t have the Kansas City Krauts or the Pittsburgh Pollacks, do we?”