Posted on 11/12/2005 8:31:38 AM PST by kingattax
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Illinois lost its appeal of the ban on the university mascot Friday and will remain on a list of schools prohibited from hosting NCAA postseason events after February.
The NCAA will allow Illinois to keep its "Illini" and "Fighting Illini" nicknames. The university contended those nicknames derived from the name of the state.
The governing body, however, said Chief Illiniwek remains a "hostile and abusive" image of American Indians. The mascot is a student dressed in buckskins and headdress who dances at halftimes of home football, basketball and volleyball games. The tradition began in 1926.
The NCAA says "Fighting Illini" can stay, but Chief Illinwek must go or Illinois will be penalized.
"The NCAA staff review committee found no new information relative to the mascot known as Chief Illiniwek or the logo mark used by some athletics teams that depicts a Native American in feathered headdress, to remove the university from the list," said Bernard Franklin, the NCAA's senior vice president for governance and membership.
School spokesman Tom Hardy says the university will study the decision before determining how it will proceed. The university can appeal to the NCAA executive committee.
Hardy said the university was gratified about the NCAA ruling on nicknames.
"I'm sure that will be comforting to the students and hundreds of thousands of alumni who are proud to call themselves Illini," he said.
The NCAA's decision on American Indian mascots, issued Aug. 5, bars universities on its list of schools deemed to use hostile imagery from hosting postseason championship events. It requires those schools to remove any offensive nickname or logo from team, cheerleader and band uniforms when participating in postseason tournaments.
The University of North Dakota, included on the NCAA list, is appealing.
The State Board of Higher Education next Thursday plans to consider a resolution that supports the appeals UND is making through the NCAA's internal process. It encourages UND to research and explore all options.
The proposed resolution also states that UND should conduct discussions with North Dakota Indian tribes "in order to find common ground."
"This is an attempt by me and our office to get something in front of the board and to respect their sentiments on the appropriate way to go forward," Chancellor Robert Potts said. "My sentiment from talking to individuals is that they have been very comfortable with the way [UND] President [Charles] Kupchella has handled the issue up to this point."
The NCAA says "Fighting Illini" can stay, but Chief Illinwek must go or Illinois will be penalized.
Don't these clowns know that the Indian in question is transgendered? Where's the problem here?????
lol
Time for colleges to drop out of the NCAA and create their own sports association.
When a few big schools stand up (they won't) things will change. It will be just like the enforcement program, the big ones will be overlooked for major infractions while the little ones (SMU's) will be crushed for half as much. NCAA shows liberalism at it's best, which is BAD.
>The proposed resolution also states that UND should conduct discussions with North Dakota Indian tribes "in order to find common ground."
Translation: Pay them off.
thats an excellent idea and should have been done a long time ago.
Let's see, Florida gets to keep Chief Osceola, but Illinois has to dump Chief Illlinwek. How is that again?
Lose the head dress and put the Chief in a suit and tie. Call him CEO Illiniwek.
Illinois should have their mascot be a guy covered by a large black bag labeled "censored"; the guy should wear an outfit so as to make the overall contour be shaped like Chief Illinwek.
Hooooray! Now my Illini Sweatshiet with the big headdress logo, and the bright orange team jacket with the headdress logo, and .... will all become more valuable as collector items. Now I can almost afford to pay the taxes for the privilege of living in Illinois.
Chief Illiniwek is pretty offenseive - he's beyond being a musical comedy character. He looks lie he lives in San Francisco.
I have a wild urge to buy one of those sweatshirts.
You can't buy new ones. They have been pulled from the market.
Dang!
My HS went from Redskins to Red Hawks a few years ago.
"When a few big schools stand up (they won't) things will change."
FSU stood up to the NCAA over this and the NCAA backed down. UI isn't FSU.
Not really. Those things will be sold unlicensed. At Dartmouth, the Dartmouth Review is the campus conservative alternative newspaper and they sell all the politicially incorrect Indian logo stuff back when Dartmouth used Indian logos for its sports teams. They sell for the same price as the noncontroversial stuff.
Can it really be that bad?
They appealed and won, not really standing up. They worked with the Seminole tribe to get their mascot. UI is not FSU. The top 40 (PAC 10, Big 12, Big 10, SEC)or so should form a new association, leave the door open for others to join, and give the NCAA the boot.
They're the Fighting Sioux.
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