Sad day in Illini land.

University of Illinois will drop Chief Illiniwek

BY DAVID MERCER

Associated Press Writer

<!-- begin body-content --> URBANA, Ill. - The University of Illinois will drop its 81-year-old American Indian mascot, Chief Illiniwek, following the last men's basketball home game of the season on Wednesday, officials said.
The move makes the school eligible to host postseason NCAA championship events.
The NCAA in 2005 deemed Illiniwek -- portrayed by buckskin-clad students who dance at home football and basketball games and other athletic events -- an offensive use of American Indian imagery and barred the university from hosting postseason events.
American Indian groups and others have complained for years that the mascot, used since 1926, is demeaning. Supporters of the mascot say it honors the contributions of American Indians to Illinois.
Illinois still will be able to use the name Illini because it's short for Illinois and the school can use the term Fighting Illini, because it's considered a reference to the team's competitive spirit, school officials said. It is unclear if the school will get a new mascot.
"The Chief Illiniwek tradition inspired and thrilled members of the University of Illinois community for 80 years," Board of Trustees Chairman Lawrence Eppley said in a statement. "It was created, carried on, and enjoyed by people with great respect for tradition, and we appreciate their dedication and commitment. It will be important now to ensure the accurate recounting and safekeeping of the tradition as an integral part of the history of the university."
The university received a letter from the NCAA dated Thursday that said the school will no longer be banned from hosting postseason events if it ends use of the mascot and related American-Indian imagery.
The NCAA's sanctions thus far have prevented Illinois from hosting only two postseason events, both in low-profile sports.
Athletic director Ron Guenther said he was disappointed in the decision, but that the NCAA's sanction hurt the school's athletes and coaches.
"This is an extremely emotional day for people on both sides of the issue, but the decision announced today ends a two-decade long struggle surrounding Chief Illiniwek on this campus ... ," Guenther said. "Personally, as an alumnus and former athlete, I am disappointed, however, as an administrator, I understand the decision that had to be made."
President Joseph B. White said he supported scrapping Chief Illiniwek.
"While I understand many people have strong feelings about this 80-year-old tradition, for the good of our student-athletes and our university it is time to come together and move on to the next chapter in the history of this distinguished institution," he said.
Basketball coach Bruce Weber said he too was disappointed, calling Chief Illiniwek a "tremendous tradition." But Weber also said he understood why the decision was made, pointing out that the NCAA barred the men's tennis team from hosting the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament last May.
"They (the board of trustees) had to make the decision. It's disappointing," he said.
On Friday, a Champaign County Circuit Court judge rejected two students' request for a court order to ban the university from "capitulating to the NCAA by announcing the retirement of Chief Illiniwek."
The NCAA has said it believes its sanctions are legal.
A state district judge in North Dakota in November granted a preliminary injunction in a similar lawsuit filed over the University of North Dakota's Fighting Sioux nickname and use of American Indian imagery.
In the lawsuit, the students also argued that by imposing sanctions, the NCAA failed to provide due process to the students and the university.

Last performance will be this Wednesday. Should be an emotional night.






Nice pic of the Notre Dame cheerleader smoking the peace pipe here:

Where did the pressure come from, why did this happen?

Surely the NCAA didnt just come up with this on their own?!

Every freaking student should wear the outfit to games now............THAT WOULD BE GREAT.

Get to work on organizing this ILLINI.

RobFunk said:

Where did the pressure come from, why did this happen?

Surely the NCAA didnt just come up with this on their own?!

Click to expand...

They have been putting mucho pressure on the schools using Indian names for a few years now. They let FSU and Utah keep their names because the tribes said it was OK.

http://www.nah.uiuc.edu/mascot-history.htm

Mascot History


Trustee Plummer’s 2002 report on the Chief Illiniwek controversy suggests a possible compromise solution—to retire the mascot and the logo but retain the name “Fighting Illini.” We anticipate that this subject may arise during the Board’s discussions in the near future and so take this opportunity to document some relevant historical facts and voice some concerns expressed by members of the local Native American community and the UIUC Committee on Native American Programs that we trust will assist and inform the Board in its deliberations.
The proposed compromise will only provide a solution to the controversy if ALL references to Native American imagery can be removed from future uses of the term “Fighting Illini.” The important question is, 'Is that possible?' Could future uses of the term “Fighting Illini” come to refer only to UIUC athletic teams and their supporters, students and alumni, without evoking any connections to stereotypical “Indian” imagery?

Trustee Plummer suggests that retention of “Fighting Illini” is feasible because "Illini" was originally coined in 1874 as a new name for the university’s student newspaper and refers to students and alumni of the university. While this is true, his report does not document how the term “Illini” continued to evolve after 1874.

Dateline of development of “Fighting Illini”:

1874. The student newspaper changed its name from The Student to The Illini (Plummer Report, 2002). Why? Because “Illini,” like alumni, it had a Latin ending, allowing the U of I to emulate eastern universities like Harvard. Most organizations at the University of Illinois gave themselves Greek or Latin-sounding names in this era, making reference to ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, considered the fount of western knowledge. As the University evolved and grew, however, it began to seek its own unique Midwestern identity. Influenced by the popular romantic imagery of “Wild Indians” in the media at this time, students suggested that their community was like an Indian tribe. University clubs named themselves Sachem and Ma-wan-da; club members held ceremonies in which they wrapped themselves in blankets and smoked “peace pipes”; the athletic teams were often referred to as “Indians.”

1914. “The Tribe of the Illini,” was established—an association of athletes who received a letter “I” for their athletic achievements. It replaced an earlier designation “Wearers of the I.” (The Illio, 1916, Vol. 22, p. 230).
1916. Coach Zuppke’s team of 1914 referred to as “the Indians” (The Illio, Vol. 22, p. 234).

1919. “the Illini jinx seemed to haunt the Indians through the entire [Football] season” (The Illio, Vol. 25, p.246).

1921. “Since the return of the Illini tribesmen on the old hunting ground, never have the war-whoops of the returning counselors and greater glory come to the tribe than that brought by the stout hearted young braves of Zuppke in their massacre.” (The Illio, Vol. 27, p. 149). “Huff's Indians followed in second place” (Ibid. p. 294.)

1923. Zuppke’s fighting Illini beat Ohio State. When eleven Orange and Blue Indians fought back (The Illio, Vol. 29, p. 330).

1924. Memorial Stadium built and dedicated to Illinois students and alumni killed in WWI. Analogies were made between “Old Illini warriors” and the “loyal sons of Illinois” as “spirits of departed braves” slain in the war. (Spindel, Dancing at Halftime, p. 77).

1926. Chief Illiniwek begins to perform at football games.

These examples illustrate that long before Chief Illiniwek was created, there was a strong link between the Illinois sports teams and American Indians. When Chief Illiniwek was introduced in 1926, it was because University of Illinois students already thought of their athletes as “Indians” and of themselves as a “tribe.” In 2003 many students and alumni continue to believe that the invented term “Illini” is interchangeable with “Illinois Indians.”

Given the explicit associations documented here, we believe a separation of the name from its traditional imagery and stereotypical symbolic associations would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. In fact, if the copyrighted logo was removed and the name retained, the name could stimulate some athletic fans to create new “Indian” imagery over which the university had no control. This could create even worse problems for local Native American families and students and exacerbate tensions. We might end up with a “solution” that solves nothing.
By far, the preferred solution is a fresh start with a new logo and new name. We believe this course will best serve all parties and the University.

it was just some guy jumping around in a costume to try and fire up the crowd at basketball games during time outs and halftime (and a bit at Football games). its really not much of a loss. I was there for 4+ years and was always embarassed seeing that same skit anyway. bye bye bye Chief....

Wow. Illini will be on suicide watch

This is crap. I will miss that halftime show man that was sweet.

I suppose wiping every vestige of Indian heritage from sight is a good thing, right?

I'm offended those bastards don't pay taxes. I say we trade the mascots for some casinos.

Complete and utter BULLSHIT.

It appears that an Oglala Sioux elder donated some of the buckskin regalia to the university for its mascot in 1982. And now the Indian nation changes its mind?

http://www.keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=0,54790

Why is it that Native Americans protest an Indian mascot yet Irish Americans don't protest the Notre Dame leprechaun mascot?

hno:

NCAA :bigfinger

Would the NCAA or the tribe also demand the name of the state be changed from Illinois?

Stanford dropped the Indian as their mascot years ago. Now the Cardinal. Life moves on.