On July 1, Dixie State will be no more. This fall, athletes will take the field for Utah Tech. And for those who fought for this progress, there is pride in taking a stand — even if there are still many in this corner of the state who vehemently oppose it.
In St. George, the university’s name change has become a cultural flashpoint, pitting some in the community against the Black student-athletes who represent the school
He remembers trying to lead a march, but hearing people chant All Lives Matter instead of Black Lives Matter. The wide receiver remembers how, on his drive to practices, he passed more Thin Blue Line flags than American ones. But those sounds are being drowned out by a rally at a nearby park, where a duo of conservative politicians dressed in denim jeans, boots and plaid shirts, are taking aim at everything from the liberal media to the voter rolls. It is still warm in the afterglow of a 93-degree day and the smell of barbecue permeates the air, creating the perfect conditions for dozing off.“I’m so glad to be back here in Washington County,” he says, the crowd stirring alive.
“I’m not going to another game,” said Brad Bennett, who was wearing a Dixie T-shirt to rally in the park. “You give the woke culture an inch and they take a mile. I graduated from Dixie State. But I’m not going back until they change the name. If the athletes don’t like it, they don’t have to come.”For a long time, as much as people in St. George celebrated the name Dixie, they didn’t have to think much about it. Not in a town where only 0.
This photo from the 1966 edition of Dixie State College's yearbook shows the school's wrestling team. “When I went outside, I didn’t feel safe for a bit,” Staine said, fearing he was being targeted for trying to change the school’s name. “My coaches made sure to tell me that if we were gonna go on this journey, I had to be ready to get some backfire,” Staine said. “I’m definitely cognizant of the pressure and the amount of responsibility. But it isn’t really pressure to me, because Martin Luther King and Malcolm X did stuff way crazier, and I’m just doing like a little leg of it. So I’m aware and I’m ready for anything that comes with it.
Back in 1866, the leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sent about 300 families to settle St. George. The plan was for the families to grow cotton and grapes, things that the warmer climate could tolerate much better than Salt Lake City and Provo. The overarching idea was for the church to be more self-sufficient and less reliant on imported crops from the American south.
This photo from the 1964 edition of Dixie State College's yearbook shows a student in black face pushing a plow during a parade.Over time, the Dixie name took on a life of its own in Saint George. In 1950, as the Civil Rights movement raged, the athletic teams at Dixie State adopted the “Rebel” mascot, which was essentially a confederate soldier. And many of the traditions of the south at the time were adopted. At games, confederate flags were flown by fans.
When he goes home for dinner on Sundays, he hears all about why the school has done the wrong thing by changing the name Dixie. That many in this community say they won’t go to games anymore.But there is no denying, to him or anyone in this program, that it was inevitable. Just look around at this place, it is expanding and rapidly receiving resources.
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