The issue of the word “dixie” in our fight song was originally brought to attention in 2013 by Dr. Cassandra Simon and the Black Faculty and Staff Association (BFSA). On March 10, 2021, BFSA officially contacted The University of Alabama Administration about the issue via a letter, which is attached below. After this initial contact, a series of meetings began, including sessions with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Vice President, the Vice President of Student Affairs, and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee in the Athletics Department. While they were never able to meet personally with Dr. Bell, they did have meetings with Chief Administrative Officer Chad Tindol and Director of Internal Affairs and UA System Liaison LeNá McDonald. After multiple meetings with the President’s Administration, the BFSA was told the project needed more support before they would be willing to address the situation. Dr. Simon and BFSA began spreading awareness to small groups and, in Fall of 2021, a group of students came together to form the beginnings of DDI. Since then, our student collective has grown and includes students from different disciplines and backgrounds.

 

DDI was created with the intention of bringing awareness to this issue, educating the campus community, and fostering chances for critical dialogue on diversity, equity, and inclusion. It is the hope of this initiative that we foster understanding, empathy, and action within our community in order to show the Administration that this issue should be taken seriously. We students of DDI encourage you to visit the “Take Action” page to sign our petition and see other ways you can become involved in this movement.