Copyright © 2000 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

The following statement is presented by the National Coalition Against Racism on Sports and the Media (NCRSM), the American Indian Movement (AIM), the American Indian Arbitration Institute (AIAI), representatives of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and many community members who are life long residents of the surrounding area, in the interest of clarifying any apparent confusion that may have arisen during the Friday, April 14, 2000 Intake Session on Chief Illiniwek.

Point One: Chief Illiniwek and the use of Native American symbols and rituals by the University of Illinois embody an intolerable form of invidious racial discrimination by a public institution directed toward Native American peoples. Chief Illiniwek and any vestige of racial imaging and stereotyping of American Indians must be removed from the University of Illinois. As long as the University of Illinois chooses as a symbol to use a group of people who are identifiable by their culture, ethnicity, religion, national origin and race, there will be a movement to deny that activity.

Point Two: We strongly support immediate action to establish a Native American Studies Program on the Urbana-Champaign campus. The development of said Program should include appropriate start-up and recurring funds needed to insure the successful development and perpetuation of the Program. Native American Scholars and students should be identified and enlisted to initiate this Program without further delay.

Point Three: Support for the Universities of Illinois to establish, fund, and sustain a Native Studies Program is just. Further, the seventy-three plus years existence of Chief Illiniwek has corrupted and poisoned conditions in the community and campus environment for Native students. As a result, to protect said Native Studies Program from backlash, outside manipulation and financial strong-arm tactics the University of Illinois needs to establish and implement a funding campaign to privately endow said Native Studies Program.

Point Four: Over the years the University of Illinois has benefitted financially from Chief Illiniwek and the exploitation of Native peoples’ images. In order to offset the harm done the University of Illinois needs to establish and implement an endowed scholarship fund to assist enrolled American Indian tribal members and their direct decedents.

Point Five: Accomplishing the above points would mark the beginning of a more ethical and forthright University of Illinois.

Point Six: We stand in full support of the unanimous position of legal tribal governments, whose resolutions leave no room for arbitration or mediation regarding the demand for the immediate removal of Chief Illiniwek as mascot, symbol and image at the University of Illinois.