NCAA bans American Indian mascots from Postseason

[whitesoxfan99]

I can understand getting rid of the mascots, but saying the teams can't have the name on the jersey is ridiculous IMO.

 

LINK

[Rowand44]

This is so f***in stupid.

[kev211]

The Illini tribe gave illionis the rights to use there name this is bs

[Nokona]

The Chief needs to scalp some suits over this.

[SnB]

yep, that illinois I is real offensive.

[LowerCaseRepublican]

The Illini tribe gave illionis the rights to use there name this is bs

While I'm thoroughly on the "Aren't there more important things to deal with on the UIUC campus" side of the fence, I do have to say that:

 

a. the outfit worn by the Chief is not an authentic Illini outfit

b. the Illini have very thin numbers population wise so odds are they probably weren't asked

c. friends of mine in the Native American house got harassed just walking down the street (not saying word one about the Chief) and had people giving some snide and racist remarks.

 

I don't really care about the Chief...I just like that I won't have to hear the endless amounts of bulls*** from either side making this the most important issue on the campus. Hell, LAS is losing midsize lectures, tuition is increasing, TAs are trying to be recognized as a legitimate union, some of the buildings on the Quad are violating fire codes, Coca-Cola's implications in working with Colombian death squads...there are many more important issues than either side of the debate whining about Chief Flips-A-Lot.

 

Besides, I'd much rather have Youppi -- (written by a friend of mine)

http://virarenae.blogspot.com/2005/03/chie...e-analysis.html

[SnB]

youppi rules.

 

but LCR, i do understand the beef about the chief at halftime during games, but that would be the only complaint i understand. I understand that side since it is a white student doing it But the other stuff i just don't get.

Does saying the word illini really offend them? Does a pretty symbolic logo offend them? It's nothing like the cleveland indians logo.

Guess i just don't understand how its offensive.

 

And your right, Lincoln hall is a dump and a half

[SleepyWhiteSox]

yep, that illinois I is real offensive.

 

Umm...I'm fairly sure the 'I' is safe, as would be the Nike-generated 'FSU' sign that Florida State uses.

 

I think they would be referring to the Indian head displayed in your sig.

 

It was interesting to read about it as an issue in Illinois while I was at FSU because it was never an issue in Florida. Permission was also granted from the Seminole tribe.

 

Anyways, it's dumb that they're doing this. The 'PC' thing is getting ridiculous...

[SnB]

Umm...I'm fairly sure the 'I' is safe, as would be the Nike-generated 'FSU' sign that Florida State uses.

i know, but in the article, it has the list of schools. The logo they use on that list is the I while the logo they use for FSU is the seminole.

ah well, this thing isn't going to go away

[SnB]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/columns/sto..._ray&id=2126159

good article on it

[LowerCaseRepublican]

youppi rules.

 

but LCR, i do understand the beef about the chief at halftime during games, but that would be the only complaint i understand. I understand that side since it is a white student doing it  But the other stuff i just don't get. 

Does saying the word illini really offend them? Does a pretty symbolic logo offend them?  It's nothing like the cleveland indians logo.

Guess i just don't understand how its offensive.

 

And your right, Lincoln hall is a dump and a half

 

There other comment is really just that the outfit isn't technically an Illini outfit so it isn't really a "fighting Illini". Plus, a lot of the times that Native Americans are mentioned or represented in sports it is always with fighting or militancy. Although the anti-Chiefers never like it when I say "Well, hey -- there are military recruiters on the Quad. We could go f*** with them since that is a direct form of militancy that is wreaking havoc."

 

The chief was/is the spiritual etc. head of the society -- it is kind of like marketing Jesus for a school (i.e. Buddy Christ in "Dogma").

 

I remember living in ISR last year and getting into it with these two fat, spiteful, hateful girls about the Chief. If you were in the dorms last year, you probably remember Project: Segregate that the RAs did in February to try to raise awareness of racism, race relations etc. and that the "Whites Only" and "Coloreds Only" was not that far in the past. They had informational signs up explaining the project etc. But, a few of the white kids felt that the signs made them racist (kinda funny -- if a sign makes you feel racist then perhaps there are deeper issues to deal with) so they began acting out.

 

The signs were defaced, torn down and nasty e-mails were sent to some of the RAs. The two girls I mentioned above went to their RAs room and harassed her with screaming at her, phone calls, e-mails etc. It got to the point that the RA wanted to quit and she had to be talked out of it by a bunch of us. The girls engineered something called "the white revolution" to protest this Project Segregate idea.

 

So, I laughed about it and went to late night. Lo and behold I ran into them and sat there in awe hearing them discuss numerous racial epithets. They even referred to the RA as a dumb "n*gger". A simple cough*whiterevolutionf***ingracists* really got their attention and they started whining about how oppressed they were. It was f***ing hilarious.

 

And you're right about the Cleveland mascot. I think a more offensive one would be gee...the "Redskins". Some of the Native Americans that come to assist with the anti-Chief work, I had an opportunity to talk to them and a lot of them travel to different areas working against the Wahoo and the Redskins as well.

 

But the thing with the voting about the Chief, they never really look at the data. Data from the Spring 2004 referendum...

 

36,712 students were enrolled at the University when the Chief referendum happened in February 2004.

 

From Honor the Chief site, the following vote tallies were found:

 

*9,161 (24.9%) voted in favor of keeping the Chief.

 

*4,027 (10.9%) voted to remove the Chief.

 

So that makes...

*23,524 (64.2%) people don't care since there are many other more pressing issues than a halftime show like:

 

1. tuition & class funding problems

 

2. lack of discussion sections and mid-sized lectures

 

3. Lincoln Hall violating numerous building and fire codes

 

4. Our soda contractor, Coke, sponsoring death squads in Colombia among other insidious crimes. Their endorsement of union busting via murder, kidnapping and harassment is much more dangerous and life threatening than a dancing caricature. Hell, Coke was even in bed supporting the Nazis during World War II.

 

Coca-Cola Germany owner Max Keith in April 1939 ordered a mass Seig Heil for Hitler's 50th birthday at the 10th anniversary party for Coke in Germany. He followed this up saying it was "to commemorate our deepest admiration and gratitude for our Fuhrer who has led our nation into a brilliant higher sphere."

 

As if having this much blood on their hands, Coke is an even bigger criminal. Coke has been linked to being the greatest polluter of groundwater in India. Indian scientists also found high levels of toxins and pesticides in Coke products which made them unsafe for drinking (think 30 times higher than the amount regulated by the EU). And what toxic sludge they don't use in their drinks, they sell to farmers as fertilizer.

 

5. Hypocritical UIUC investments:

 

With our focus on engineering at U of I, would it surprise you to find investments in defense contractors responsible for designing weapons capable of killing countless tan people the world over?

 

It is just the extremists on both sides of this that really tick me off because they won't shut the f*** up. If one's life is that attached to a mascot -- put a bullet in your damn head and stopping stealing precious oxygen.

[SnB]

and in response to Lcr's long and smart post, i'll respond with this:

"I'd like to buy the world a coke, take time to stop and smile."

God i hate tha commercial

[Texsox]

All schools should be designated by a number. Then only the odd people will protest.

[LowerCaseRepublican]

and in response to Lcr's long and smart post, i'll respond with this:

"I'd like to buy the world a coke, take time to stop and smile."

God i hate tha commercial

That'd be a real expensive venture to buy the world a Coke. But do you know who else isn't buying the world a Coke? Coke.

[SnB]

That'd be a real expensive venture to buy the world a Coke.  But do you know who else isn't buying the world a Coke?  Coke.

adult swim

nice

[ZoomSlowik]

I've long been fed up with the whole Chief arguement. Those ratios of keep/change/indifferent was found to be relatively the same in the Native American population in a massive survey done by Sports Illustrated. This poll was not even about the Illini, it included all Indian mascots, and specifically mentioned the Redskins. Most of the time I find that the people fighting the cause to change the logo are middle-upper class white people with too much time on their hands. In our Anthropology class at Illinois, we discussed the situation, including the department's anti-chief position. I found it funny though that they basically mirrored one of the major problems that they discuss in that section of the course: the majority should not speak for the group that is being marginalized.

 

There are definitely bigger problems on campuses, some of which were mentioned earlier. More troubling is that Anti-Chief people think linking the issue with federal funding will make a difference. All that does is drop funding for the schools and raise tuition. Using the Chief as a reason to hurt the school strikes me as horribly ridiculous.

 

I'm pretty sure that a major reason that FSU hasn't heard from the Seminoles is that they reached an agreement (bought them off might be a better term). Illinois can't really do the same since few Illini still are around. I'll be really interested to see if the Notre Dame's Leprauchan getting ready to fight or the Tennessee Volunteer holding a musket fall into the category of violent and offensive, as well as some of the other logos.

Edited August 7, 2005 by ZoomSlowik

[WSFAN35]

Mike Downey in the Trib

 

I want that leprechaun put to sleep.

 

Do you hear me, NCAA? I don't want to see that darn leprechaun at Notre Dame's games anymore. No more of that goofy green suit. No more of that hokey hat. Most of all, no more of that offensive, insensitive, insulting, dehumanizing dance.

 

 

As a proud Irish-American, I demand that you make the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame get rid of that stupefying, stereotypical mascot of theirs. And that little jig of his. And I mean pronto, if you'll excuse my use of Indian lingo.

 

Ladies and gentlemen of the NCAA, I implore you. Do that thing you do. Do what you did Friday, when your executive committee announced that it no longer would tolerate any "hostile and abusive racial/ethnic/national origin mascots, nicknames or imagery."

 

A leprechaun is all that.

 

He is mischievous by nature. He is up to no good. He clearly is abusive. Have you ever seen him treat Notre Dame's enemies with any kindness?

 

And what of that big, crooked stick in his hand? He doesn't carry that cudgel because he is lame. It isn't a cane. A leprechaun doesn't limp. Look at that little fool do his dance. He moves fine. No, a shillelagh looks like a weapon to me. You wouldn't let a Seminole or an Illini walk around a football stadium with a bow and arrow, would you?

 

I can guess what you are thinking. You're thinking an Irish-American is not an oppressed minority. Or hasn't been one.

 

Well, you couldn't be more wrong. Irish immigrants were given a very bad time in America when they first came here. They were treated as suspicious foreigners. Their ancestry and accents were mocked. They were maligned as "Micks" and stigmatized as brawling drunks.

 

Therefore, I would like you righteous brothers and sisters at the NCAA to put an end to the degradation of this "Fighting Irish" slur once and for all. A lot of us don't fight. I don't fight. Well, I did toss a guy out of a bar in Greece last summer, but he was drunker than I was.

 

The NCAA has made a good start. The actions it took Friday gave notice to the Bradley Braves and Central Michigan Chippewas and Utah Utes that they had better take all of their Native American garb, arrowheads, weapons and war paint and dump the whole pile into a Dumpster.

 

If these people want to host a postseason competition ever again, they will have to abide by the NCAA's rules and lose the Indian theme.

 

You, noble warlords of the NCAA, are taking no prisoners. University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux? What do you care if there are Sioux who don't care? So what if there are remaining members of the Sioux tribe who are honored by this legacy? Your edict has come down. You have spoken. The next time North Dakota plays for a national championship, its mascot had better be Buffalo Bill.

 

OK, so a lot of us happen to believe that tribal names are not unto themselves offensive. Illini, Seminole, Chippewa, Choctaw … these don't seem so bad to us. They have history and dignity. We have entire states named for Indian tribes, for heaven's sake. What do you think the word "Illinois" is, anyway … French? Its origin is Algonquin.

 

What some of us do resent is the way Caucasians paint their faces red and wear buckskin and feathers and go hey-yo-yo-yo and woo-woo-woo. It doesn't matter if there are some Indians who take no umbrage at this, not until you have taken a vote from every last one of them in this land that their ancestors founded.

 

Jimmy Carter was as humane and decent a president as this nation has had in this last half-century. So it was appalling to see him at Atlanta Braves baseball games, chanting and chopping a make-believe tomahawk. There are ways to support a favorite team without making a mockery of an entire culture and race.

 

Somebody should take those Cleveland Indians caps with the grinning red-faced Indian and fling them into Ohio's largest incinerator. Somebody should go up to an African-American athlete on the Washington Redskins and ask him how he would like it if his team were known as the Washington … uh, you know.

 

I don't mind a team being called the Irish, I really don't. I take pride in my heritage. I wish we could live in a world in which a university's teams could be called the Fighting Italians, the Fighting Mexicans, the Fighting Japanese or the Fighting Germans.

 

Yet if we get rid of some, mustn't we get rid of all? Can a school really get away with calling itself the Fighting Irish in the wake of this NCAA posse's vigilant PC crackdown? Doesn't this scurrilous nickname need to go? Isn't it time for the leprechaun to sleep with the fishes?

 

We have come to a seminal moment in the history of America's collegiate athletics, and I do not mean the team names at Florida State.

[Cerbaho-WG]

I can guess what you are thinking. You're thinking an Irish-American is not an oppressed minority. Or hasn't been one.

 

Well, you couldn't be more wrong. Irish immigrants were given a very bad time in America when they first came here. They were treated as suspicious foreigners. Their ancestry and accents were mocked. They were maligned as "Micks" and stigmatized as brawling drunks.

 

Give me a break. Most Irish could give a s*** in ND has a leprechaun doing stuff during the game, we simply don't care. The little green dude doesn't pray to the Catholic Church or eat sacrement during the game, he holds up f***ing "Let's Go Irish" signs. Goddamn.

 

As an Irishman, shut the f*** up, Mike Downey. I see the point you're trying to make and you've failed horribly.

[SnB]

Give me a break. Most Irish could give a s*** in ND has a leprechaun doing stuff during the game, we simply don't care. The little green dude doesn't pray to the Catholic Church or eat sacrement during the game, he holds up f***ing "Let's Go Irish" signs. Goddamn.

 

As an Irishman, shut the f*** up, Mike Downey. I see the point you're trying to make and you've failed horribly.

actually, then you missed his entire point.

Your right, the irish don't care. But if your going to get rid of just the indian related names, isn't that racism?

 

His point is that you can't pick and choose what's offensive and what's not. If you can't have a indian as your logo, you shouldn't be able to have an irishmen.

[ChWRoCk2]

took them long enough to get somethin through to process the mascot cancellation request

[greasywheels121]

[SnB]

isn't that offensive to indianans?

[greasywheels121]

isn't that offensive to indianans?

 

They should be honored.

[DukeNukeEm]

Saluki is safe.

 

Whew.

[Mplssoxfan]

Saluki is safe.

 

Whew.

 

Not from PETA.