Hail to the Chief

Any of you that follow college sports may be familiar with the long-standing battle over team mascots that various groups, over time, have deemed offensive - specifically, teams that chose, in a less enlightened time, to represent themselves through unflattering charicatures of Native Americans.

And many of you may be aware, for decades the University of Illinois and our proud symbol, Chief Illiniwek, has often been at the forefront of this battle. Florida State University - the Seminoles - have also been singled out. However, I, and others like me, argue that these two schools do not meet the criteria specified by the NCAA's new policy.

On August 6, 2005 the NCAA Executive Committee announced it would bar "hostile and abusive racial/ethnic/national origin mascots, nicknames or imagery" in its championship competitions. While it named 18 schools, it made no secret that it was gunning specifically for Illinois and Florida. The appeal process has been ongoing, and in what I am sure was a kangaroo court, the final appeal was just denied.

This committee of yet another cadre of middle-aged white guys decided that, since nothing else has worked, they would impose their own personal world views upon society by taking from the schools what would hurt the most - income from sporting events.

This means that a distant committee of over-reaching outsiders is holding our school hostage over something they have no business meddling with - free speech and the right to choose our own identity. The school's options are to cave and not only discontinue the Chief's halftime performances, they would also be forced to remove the small Chief graphic from the player's uniforms. Or they can stand their ground, which means they would not be allowed to host post-season sporting events. This is not only a financial hardship, it impacts recruiting potential.

There are so many things wrong with this it's hard to know where to begin. You can be assured that I write this with tears in my eyes and rage in my heart.

First off, let me state that I am not in favor of "mascots" that are blatant charicatures - the now-defunct Bradly Braves are one such example. I do have a problem with anything that openly mocks any culture, and I agree those had to go. And I'm not fond of the silly animal-themed teams - in fact, academics aside, the dignity of Chief Illiniwek is one of the things that led me to choose Illinois.

One of my biggest beefs with the publicity surrounding this issue has always been the media's insistence on inflammatory language, blatant inaccuracy and selective provision of facts. Lest my few readers have been exposed to these fallacies, I wanted to use this forum to set a few things straight.

The media's insistence on referring to Chief Illiniwek as a "mascot" never ceases to infuriate me. Anyone who knows anything about the school would never refer to him as such. The Chief is not now, nor will he ever be considered a mascot. He is our school's symbol, and we hold him in high regard.

Mascots run around the sidelines in ridiculous foam costumes. Mascots engage in faux fisticuffs with other school's mascots. Mascots engage in all manner of silly antics, such as goal-posting and crowd-baiting.

The Chief is not present during game play. When not performing, the student that portrays the Chief stands on the sidelines in a suit and tie. When he is in costume, he conducts himself with the utmost decorum, and in complete silence.

Illiniwek was the name of the loose confederation of Algonquin tribes that once lived in the region; the French changed the ending to -ois, hence the state's name. The translation means "they are men." Our school symbol is a literal homage to the Native Americans from whence our state's identity originated - what could possibly be "hostile and abusive" about that? There are those - caucasians all - who argue this is offensive because they were a peaceful people and our team is called the "Fighting" Illini. Personally, I think these people have too much time on their hands, and perhaps they should use some of it to learn the truth and the history instead of clinging to a silly argument and spouting uninformed rhetoric.

Because these tribes no longer exist we cannot ask them what they think. However, we have the open support of other tribes, which I believe is indicative of what the original Illiniwek might say. The buckskin costume and headdress worn by the Chief is authentic - the original was made for us by the Sioux in 1930. Since then five authentic costumes have been used, the latest a gift from Chief Frank Fools Crow of the Sioux in 1983.

The students chosen to portray the Chief go to live on an Indian reservation prior to the school year. It is here that they learn the dance, which is a celebratory dance that has no religious or war-time significance. It's also worth noting that the music the Chief performs to is a traditional American march with motifs derived from Native American music.

While I do not know the details of the Seminole's traditions, I do know this: the Seminole tribe is alive and well, and issued a press release stating that the only thing they were offended by was the NCAA's actions. The spokesman essentially said the NCAA had some nerve, deciding for them what they should find offensive. Florida State President T.K. Wetherell reacted angrily to the NCAA's new policy and threatened legal action. "That the NCAA would now label our close bond with the Seminole people as culturally hostile and abusive is both outrageous and insulting," he said.

The detail that's been lost in the outrage over Illinois and Florida State is that this ruling will not just affect schools like Illinois and Florida State. The language of the policy is vague enough it is deliberately creating a slippery slope, and once they've made an example of Illinois they can easily move to attack schools like Notre Dam (the Fighting Irish). Not to mention the many smaller schools that will be mowed down in the path of the power-hungry NCAA, schools without the money or prestige to fight for their rights.

The performance of Chief Illinwek at the University of Illinois is known as one of the most dramatic and dignified traditions in college athletics. The band works its way through the intricate drill, spelling out Illini, to the music of the "Three in One" (including the songs: The Pride of the Illini, The March of the Illini and the Alma Mater). This drill was first done in 1926 and remains nearly unchanged to this day. (That's me, btw, at the top left corner of the first "I".)


The band sings the Pride of the Illini as the Chief dances his way through the band:

We are marching for dear old Illini
For the men who are fighting for you
Here's a cheer for our dear alma mater
May our love for her ever be true
While we're marching along life's pathway
May the spirit of old Illinois
Keep us marching and singing
With true Illini spirit
For our dear old Illinois


Then the band plays this song with the Chief dancing his way to center field. 70,000 people fall silent. And 70,000 people cross their arms as he walks down the 50 yard line. And 70,000 people, in perfect unison with the Chief, raise their arms as the music crescendos. Then, 70,000 people link arms and sing, reverently, the Alma Mater, while the Chief remains, unmoving, arms pointed to the sky.


Hail to the Orange
Hail to the Blue
Hail Alma Mater
Ever so True
We love no other
So let our motto be
Victory, Illinois, Varsity

The music reprises the Pride of the Illini as the Chief brings the dance to a joyous close, then he walks, with utmost dignity, from the field.

This is the longest-running tradition in college sports. Even now, 11 years after my last half-time performance, the memory gives me chills. There are few things in life about which I am prouder, than the three years I spent upholding the traditions of the Marching Illini.

Illinois - specifically, the Marching Illini - was the pioneer in most college sport traditions. The Marching Illini performed the first halftime show - ever - in 1907. They were the first to do school letter formations on the field. They were the first band to sing a capella on the field. They initiated the first student cheering section (Block I) with the picture-cards that have become ubiquitous at modern sporting events. They were the first marching band to record a CD. John Phillip Sousa called them "The Best Band in the Land" and left his personal library to them.

And, with Chief Illiniwek, they created the concept of the school symbol.

That means ALL school "mascots" have their roots with Chief Illiniwek. This fact alone should indicate that our Chief is not the problem - the issue should be with the schools who took the concept farther down the road to cartoonish insensitivity. Had other schools emulated the example set by Illinois we wouldn't be having this conversation.

It's now coming to light that the NCAA is reaching even farther beyond it's actual purpose of ensuring fair and equitable sports competition and is now attempting to influence the selection of university presidents. It's not enough that they have Athletic Directors in their pockets, and have resorted to financial blackmail on issues like this... now they've decided they want to influence academics as well. This begs the questions: where will it end? And how?

There are those calling for Illinois to initiate legal action, and there are those who say it won't do any good. I think a court battle isn't necessarily a bad thing, but not just because I want to save the Chief. The NCAA has got to be stopped, because this isn't just an issue of a single symbol of a single school. This has become an issue of basic freedoms, of First Amendment rights, and of an organization grown corrupt with power.

This is a time to stand up for principals, but the University is already showing signs of bowing to the demands of the NCAA. This is a time to listen to the students, the alumns, the people who care deeply about this issue for real reasons, and not those who pretend to care about it, who are using the smoke and mirrors of political correctness to hide their real agenda. Our call to arms is Hail to the Orange, Hail to the Blue. But the administration is blinded by Green, and I fear our battle is finally to be lost to the one weapon all the alumni pride and school spirit in the world can't fight: money.

Save the Chief.