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MPR News Staff

Lake Calhoun signs updated to include the lake's Dakota name, Bde Maka Ska

The new signs include the lake's Dakota name
Signs at Lake Calhoun have been changed to include the lake's Dakota name, Bde Maka Ska. The new signs were approved last month by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.
Peter Cox | MPR News

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Minneapolis Park and Recreation employees installed new signs around Lake Calhoun yesterday that include the lake's Dakota name, Bde Maka Ska.

The lake's name hasn't changed, but new signs are "intended to honor the Dakota people and educate the public about the lake's Dakota name," according to a press release from the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.

The update comes after the board voted on Sept. 3 to add the Dakota name. The vote was sparked by activists who said the name Calhoun is offensive.

Lake Calhoun was named for John C. Calhoun, a South Carolina statesman, former vice president, senator, secretary of state and proponent of slavery. He is infamously known for calling slavery "a positive good" in the 1800s.

The board said its legal counsel advised that it has no authority to change the lake's name.