Utah's Dixie State University considers name change, critics note slavery connotations

A university in southern Utah is considering dropping “Dixie” from its name amid nationwide protests against racial injustice that have brought a renewed focus on references to the Confederacy.

Dixie State University, located about 300 miles south of Salt Lake City, has faced scrutiny in the past over its name but resisted changing. Now, protests following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody have renewed calls to change the name.

Many institutions have recently distanced themselves from the term, while some companies have moved to drop labeling viewed as racist, including brands such as Eskimo Pie and Aunt Jemima.

Dixie State, with an enrollment of about 11,000 students, transitioned from a college to a university in 2013 and is one of the largest universities in southern Utah.

University leaders are in the early stages of discussing a potential name change, but the Republican-controlled state Legislature would have the final say.

University spokesperson Jordon Sharp said administrators understand that for some people, the term Dixie "stirs negative connotations associated with discrimination and intolerance." But, he said, Dixie State also respects that the word has a regional meaning that people believe describes the "local heritage and honoring the men and women who settled the beautiful St. George area."

Trisha Dugovic, spokesperson for Utah System of Higher Education, said university officials haven't discussed a new name, but in the past, people have suggested St. George University or the University of St. George.

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The area was nicknamed Dixie when Latter-day Saints settlers tried to make the region a cotton-growing mecca. Supporters have said the name is important to the area's heritage and is separate from the history of slavery.

A group of students, faculty and activists unsuccessfully pushed for a name change in 2013. The school's board of trustees unanimously voted to retain the name after a marketing firm conducted a survey that found broad local support.

Jeanetta Williams, president of NAACP's tri-state conference area of Idaho-Utah-Nevada, said it is time for Dixie State to show that it rejects Confederate symbols and change its name.

"It would send a clear message that they are listening to the people, not only here in Utah, but across the country when people are saying that names do matter; flags do matter; the Confederate symbols and the Southern stances after the Civil War -- they do matter," said Williams, who was a vocal critic of the school's decision in 2013.

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A recent online petition calling on Republican Gov. Gary Herbert to bar the use of the word Dixie in reference to the town of St. George, as well as Dixie State University, has amassed more than 1,800 signatures while an opposing petition that supports the word and its connection to the town's history has gained over 14,000 signatures.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.