Illinois students sue to keep Chief Illiniwek

[The Sicatoka]

This one really deserves a thread of its own:

University of Illinois STUDENTS sue to keep Chief Illiniwek.

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/200...t_to_save_chief

I'm proud of our students. They have 100 million times more backbone than the adults on our Board of Trustees.

BTW, the story makes a passing reference to North Dakota's lawsuit and the injunction.

[The Sicatoka]

The lawsuit also claims the NCAA has denied the UI and, by extension, the student plaintiffs, with due process protections set forth in a state statute known as the Collegiate Athletic Association Compliance Enforcement Procedures Act. Those protections include burden of proof and evidentiary requirements.

Evidence? Proof? The NCAA doesn't need those. Heck, they won't even visit a campus to try to find them. They'd rather assume.

The lawsuit states the NCAA's actions "are unlawful in that they impose sanctions and punishment upon UIUC for complying with state law," which specifically declares that Chief Illiniwek is the honored symbol of the UI's Urbana-Champaign campus. It asks the court to declare the NCAA's policy and sanctions, as they relate to Chief Illiniwek, "null, void and unenforceable."

State. Law.

Is that anything like ND SBoHE policy (the legislated governing body) stating what UND's moniker shall be?

The students argue that, in portraying the Chief, they are engaged in "protected speech, protected freedom of expression and academic freedom" guaranteed by the state constitution.Their portrayal of the Chief is also part of an academic course, for which they receive academic credit, so the NCAA is interfering with the students' contractual relationship with the UI, it argues.

It's sad when the students have to teach administrators about "protected speech, protected freedom of expression and academic freedom".

Now read my signature.

[PCM]

It looks as if the lawsuit was too little, too late. If the University of Illinois decides on its own to end the use of Chief Illiniwek, then it seems the lawsuit is a moot point.

Chief's fate to be announced today

The game is almost over for Chief Illiniwek.

Lawrence Eppley, chairman of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees, will announce today the end to the 80-year-old tradition, The News-Gazette has learned.

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The university has reserved space at the UI Research Park for the announcement. An exact time was not known as of Thursday evening.

Soon the Chief will not perform at UI athletic events or be the official symbol for UI athletics, the newspaper has learned.

[yepdude]

http://media.www.dailyillini.com/media/sto...y-2724408.shtml

Retirement for the Chief

[yepdude]

You are too quick PCM, too quick, fastest typing this side of the Mighty Mississippi

[The Sicatoka]

I still want to know how "Illini", the name of a tribe, can still be the moniker at Illinois.

What was the Myles Brand of logic: Illini came from Illinois, so it's OK.

Uh, Myles, Illinois came from the name of the people who lived there before Europeans: the Illini. You can't tell me Illini came from Illinois in WWII when Illinois came from Illini a couple hundred years before. No, wait, you can tell it to me, but it's still non-sense.

[PCM]

No, wait, you can tell it to me, but it's still non-sense.

From a "divide and conquer" perspective, it makes sense. By throwing the Illini a bone, the NCAA effectively created a rift between those who wanted to fight and those who were looking for an excuse to bail out. UND faces a similar situation, thanks to Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa.

[The Sicatoka]

From a "divide and conquer" perspective, it makes sense. By throwing the Illini a bone, the NCAA effectively created a rift between those who wanted to fight and those who were looking for an excuse to bail out. UND faces a similar situation, thanks to Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa.

So, if this "yes, the word means, but Myles Brand says it means" (non-sensical) logic works ....

Why doesn't UND become .... "The Fighting Sioux" --> Woodrow Wilson Keeble, the Fighting Sioux.

A tribe?

Oh no, no, no.

Just this one guy over here, and his family approves.

(This approach works for the ND Highway Patrol and the Red Tomahawk based logo on their cars and uniforms.)

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

Here's a story on the court's decision. For me, the most interesting part was the quote from the judge-words to the effect of "Its an easy sell to say that the NCAA is arbitary and capricious when you compare the enforcement of Florida State and Illinois". That's the angle I wish our trustees would have taken months ago. But I'm not a lawyer.

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/u_of_i/20...lawsuit?src=rss

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

I still want to know how "Illini", the name of a tribe, can still be the moniker at Illinois.

FWIW, there was never a tribe called "Illini". Illiniwek is a word in the shared language of several tribes. If you have ever seen the movie "Little Big Man", the meaning comes closest to the term "human beings" as it is used in the movie. According to some, it was a term that described all of the people that these tribes were aware of on earth. They had no knowledge of the Plains Indians, the Indians who inhabited what is today called New England or any other areas. For us, this has been a double-edged sword: we have nobody to ask permission of (a la your school, Utah or Florida State) but that also means that just about anyone can claim to be slighted (as was seen when a totally unrelated tribe tried to grab back a costume purchased on the open market for publicity). Most of the tribes who used that language eventually assimalated into other tribes or died off (some were killed off by other Indians). One of the most prominent of the still-existant tribes is the Peoria tribe, located in Oklahoma.

I don't recall exactly why we got a pass on the name, but I do seem to remember that it had something to do with the idea that the University was using "Illini" to refer to students before we even had sports teams.

[Sioux-cia]

Salfrand represents the NC$$,

"It does not wish to be associated with a member who uses hostile Native American imagery," Salfrank said.

Jones chided the NCAA for what he believed to be apparent hypocrisy in allowing Florida State University to keep using a mascot that rides a horse onto a field and throws a flaming spear.

Will Judge Jones statement help us?

[dagies]

Here's a story on the court's decision. For me, the most interesting part was the quote from the judge-words to the effect of "Its an easy sell to say that the NCAA is arbitary and capricious when you compare the enforcement of Florida State and Illinois". That's the angle I wish our trustees would have taken months ago. But I'm not a lawyer.

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/u_of_i/20...lawsuit?src=rss

I liked

"Right or wrong this is their call," Jones said. "I don't know that it's my business to tell them how to run their institution."

[PCM]

From the story above:

Representing the NCAA, Kansas City, Mo., attorney Linda Salfrank argued the only potential harm, if there was any, would not be until August or September 2007, when Chief Illiniwek would not be allowed to perform at halftime of football games.

She said the policy is "not a dictate, not a mandate," but rather the right of association for the private organization.

"It does not wish to be associated with a member who uses hostile Native American imagery," Salfrank said.

How does this make sense? The only way the NCAA can not be associated with a member institution that "uses hostile Native American imagery" is to kick it out of the association! As it currently stands, UND can continue to use its "hostile Native American imagery" and it can continue to participate in NCAA-sponsored playoff events. It just can't display those words or images at those events. So even if UND keeps its Fighting Sioux nickname and logo, it will still be associated with the NCAA.

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

I liked

I would like it too if our Board had the guts to sue the NCAA.

The way I read that quote was that the judge was essentially telling the students that they had no standing to sue: an opinion many predicted yesterday.

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

From the story above:

How does this make sense? The only way the NCAA can not be associated with a member institution that "uses hostile Native American imagery" is to kick it out of the association! As it currently stands, UND can continue to use its "hostile Native American imagery" and it can continue to participate in NCAA-sponsored playoff events. It just can't display those words or images at those events. So even if UND keeps its Fighting Sioux nickname and logo, it will still be associated with the NCAA.

I agree with your opinion. The potential harm to the STUDENTS would not occur until next fall, but the potential harm to the UNIVERSITY started last year when we were prohibited from hosting some NCAA games-and there's talk that since we may be NIT-bound this year, the Trustees wanted to get our basketball team a home game. Oh, and I think she's using the word "associate" meaning that they would have those NCAA banners at Illlinois. She's trying to argue that in non-tourney events, the NCAA hasn't barred anyone from coming to Champaign for regular-season games.

I hate to be mellodramatic, but how many pieces of silver???

[PCM]

What's the word on the Illini logo featuring the chief? Is it safe to assume that UI has given that up, too?

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

What's the word on the Illini logo featuring the chief? Is it safe to assume that UI has given that up, too?

It hasn't been decided yet. The University owns that trademark, and they fear giving it up into the public domain would be counter-productive: they say it could be used on toilet paper, etc. Some cynical types also mention that it would become a HUGE money-maker and eat into the profits of University-licensed jerseys, t-shirts, etc. But our board is altruistic, isn't it? They certainly wouldn't even think about crass commercialism.

One option under discussion is to give (or loan) the use of that trademark to the group of former Chiefs.

FWLIW, that logo has long since disappeared from our playing fields and courts, as well as our uniforms. We've been trying to appease the PC-police for over ten years. Obviously, the appeasement tactic didn't work.

[dagies]

I would like it too if our Board had the guts to sue the NCAA.

The way I read that quote was that the judge was essentially telling the students that they had no standing to sue: an opinion many predicted yesterday.

I can understand why you didn't like it. The reason I liked it is because that's basically what many have been saying about the NCAA. They shouldn't be telling individual institutions how to run their show. In fact, I think that's in their charter.

[PCM]

It ain't over 'til it's over.

From the News-Gazette:

Judge's Chief ruling leaves some issues still open

A judge's ruling denying a temporary restraining order to stop the University of Illinois from stopping Chief Illiniwek's performances leaves open complaints by two students that their rights are harmed by such action by campus trustees.

Judge Michael Jones ruled late Friday morning against the two students, Dan Maloney and Logan Ponce, only as far as denying them a temporary restraining order against the UI and its board of trustees.

"The case is by no means over," said Brent Holmes, the students' attorney. "We're exploring what options (Maloney and Ponce) have available to them."

(Judge) Jones was critical of the NCAA, saying that its enforcement, so far, of its own policy appeared to be hypocritical.

"It's an easy sell that enforcement of the policy is arbitrary and capricious," the judge said.

"They don't wish to associate with members who use Native American imagery, unless, of course, they do," Jones said.

[Sioux-cia]

"Hypocritical...' Ya think!?!?

"They don't wish to associate with members who use Native American imagery, unless, of course, they do," Jones said.

I certainly hope that the NC$$ attorneys use this argument when they go to court against us in December

The NCAA and the American Indian community "is offended and should be offended" by the FSU display, Salfrank said.

[Chief Illiniwek Supporter]

What's the word on the Illini logo featuring the chief? Is it safe to assume that UI has given that up, too?

Here's the first article I've seen that addresses that issue. Of course, nobody is suprised that Chief is a huge money maker and the University has had an attack of money-grubbing after kowtowing to the PC brigade; a few days ago dropping Chief was just the right thing to do, but today its "well, we have to think everything thru before we rashly make a decision we'll regret later":

http://www.jg-tc.com/articles/2007/02/20/s...s/sports002.txt

Not surprisingly, various groups have approached the university about wanting to obtain ownership rights of the Chief Illiniwek logo, and there are good reasons for the university to listen.

The main reason is a simple one: The Chief logo has great value.

One other item for your fans: I haven't seen this reported in the media yet, but various message boards are saying that the local Champaign activists with too much time on their hands are already saying that the Illini nickname is still unacceptable and they plan to continue to protest.