Controversial mascot staying in Illinois during NCAA Final Four

[seemslikeadream]

BY ELIZABETHE HOLLAND

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

...

But the team symbol with the shortest drive to St. Louis won't make the trip. "Chief Illiniwek" will stay home at the University of Illinois.

The chief - a student in buckskins, feathery headdress and makeup - has become less visible at athletic events over the past five years or so. Except for the occasional road game, like the Braggin' Rights showdown here between Missouri and Illinois, he seldom leaves Urbana-Champaign. There, his appearances are mainly at football, volleyball and men's and women's basketball games, said Kent Brown, the university sports information director.

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Critics complain that an Indian mascot, particularly at a largely Caucasian campus, is racist and insensitive, and that 78 years of it is about 78 years too many.

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Meanwhile, a report last fall by the North Central Association, a school accreditation organization, said the university will face damage if the issue isn't resolved.

And earlier this month, opponents of the chief, including the Illinois Native American Bar Association, sued to get the trustees to end the chief's reign. They said he perpetuates a racial stereotype, violates Indians' rights and violates the board's own anti-discrimination policies.


more
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/news/nation/11266097.htm

Chief Illiniwek - not only a token, he's a trademark!