Chief Illiniwek stirs many emotions
IV Leader Staff, Mar 15, 2007
To The Chief’s Supporters – Get Over It!!
I have heard and read with dismay and utter disbelief the
comments of current and former University of Illinois students about their
emotional attachment to “Chief Illiniwek” ever since coming to this state six
years ago.
I don’t think I have ever seen grown adults become so
distraught over something so inane in all my life. A University is a place you
go to get an education.
While I myself have many fond memories of my days in college,
I can say without a doubt that none of them have anything to do with school
mascots.
If Michigan State ditched the Spartan mascot tomorrow, it
would change nothing about who I am today or what I experienced during those
formative years.
Quite frankly, I’ve pretty much laughed off the teeth
gnashing and wailing of those in the pro-Chief camp, but I’ve had enough and
must respond.
Let’s get something straight: the Chief is not a positive
image of Native Americans. He is a silly caricature. No, he’s worse. He’s a
white guy dressed up in regalia not authentic to the people he supposedly
represents jumping around during sporting events for the amusement of others.
His presence has done nothing to promote the tragic history
that led to the decimation of a people, nor does he do anything to celebrate the
resilience of these cultures that have endured despite these tragedies.
In the words of the Native American House, “American Indian
peoples have spoken out for many years about the harmful effects of the
University of Illinois’s mascot. . .We hope that students and community members
who wish to honor and remember indigenous peoples will do so by learning about
actual Indian people, not fantasies of what uninformed non-Indians suppose that
Indians are like.
One way to learn about actual Indian people would be to
attend NAH events and to enroll in AIS courses.”
To pretend that Native Americans are honored by the Chief is
simply a symptom of the bigotry that has allowed this symbol to continue way
beyond the time of other derogatory symbols, like Little Black Sambo and Frito
Bandito.
Liking the chief may not make you a bigot, but failing to
recognize the racist stereotypes that such a symbol perpetuates shows at the
very least the cultural insensitivity of his supporters.
Amanda Bigelow Professor of Political Science
Editors Note: This letter was received before Jeff Armstrong’s column and is in no way a response to his views or opinions.