A Chief Progression
By Jeff Ginger
Our campus at U of I has been waging war against itself for years over this pro-anti-Chief thing. It seems break-down to typically to the usual issue we have with discrimination - the majority of our campus doesn't have any idea what it's like to be a minority. Then again it's not like the administration has a fakely dressed non-native
American guy parading around who poses to take pictures with the kids. Here's my deal: Aren't there bigger, more important things to worry about? Honestly I think the discrimination against black or
Latino or LGBT people is ten fold what it is to native
Americans at U of I. I understand the fact that our forefathers essentially conducted a genocidal war against them and nearly wiped out all existence of Native American community and culture. As it stands there are a few piss-poor reservations with a few tattered and badly treated people. My friend Liz went to go volunteer at one as an alternative spring break - beyond my stereotypical associations their communities are plagued with all manner of issues - perhaps worse conditions in many ways than Jim Crow or Illegal Immigration could have conjured up.
Despite all of this - just like the starving children
across the world, I feel bad for them and seek to help on some abstract level, but honestly feel like my time and effort could be better placed helping people elsewhere. Students protesting the chief seldom involve themselves in campaigns for the betterment of Native American communities. The issue suffers from the curse of abstraction - to many it becomes a Republican/Democrat debate, or a question of school pride, or a symbol for the discriminaton incurred by all people of a minority cultural or racial status. The fight, if anything, is symbolic, and utterly ivory tower. Further, as Judith Pintar aptly puts it, mascotts and school symbols are in place to help rally together support, raise spirit, and ultimately bring people together in a positive fashion. The Cheif is anything but that. If the sheer amount of arguing and effort that's going into
disbanding or fighting for the Chief were placed into just one volunteer campaign to assist the poor or homeless or minorities or the abused in America we'd have a hell of a force on our hands. It's sad to me that so many people can support some guy in a costume and sports and not things like say, the environment, which in my opinion ought to be universally respected. All those rich assholes running corporations profit at the expense of the
environment are just as doomed - if we blow up the earth, the shit that hits the fan will be raining down on all of us.
So what am I saying? Honestly I think the Chief is racism related and a problematic figure. The fight surrounding him all too often has little to do with compassion for the conditions of Native Americans or of other minority status citizens. But so what - there are much more important things to worry about. Lets put the effort we'd spend throwing mud at each other related to the
Chief into causes that will actually help people. Go volunteer at the homeless shelter, introduce recycling into a business that doesn't do it, tutor some kid in math after school - it's all your choice. I honestly think real-time effort placed into places in life around you will be more effective then combating this particular symbol of discrimination.
Expecting all colors of flak for this one.
A Change of Opinions
Written in haste this statement doesn't afford enough consideration to the issue. I ought to dismantle the 'honor the chief' website piece by piece. Last update March 6th, 2007.
So after attending the STOP Coalition and seeing the outcry and support over this issue - over 2000 students who either attended in Foellinger or remote locations or streaming online - I don't think I can safely say the discrimination against Blacks, Latinas, and people of LGBT identification is worse than it is for Native Americans. Nor is the fight purely symbolic - there happens to be a definitive group of Native American people with some powerful emotions invested in their culture, background, and the abuse of their image. The STOP Coalition is comprised of all manner of cultural tolerance related groups and shows a heck of a unified support - organized and educated liberals in solidarity en masse, not just some students fighting about a cause they don't really understand. With the issue of an ultimatum and a strong set of lobbying for change I don't know that my previous critique holds as much solid ground. On the whole yes, issues of discrimination among other under represented groups numerically are probably more significant, but that doesn't mean this isn't a fight worth fighting.
I'd also like to toss out the alternative picture. if we dismantle the Chief, what happens? We lose money and contributions. We have to come up with a different half-time show. We mess with the comfort of a pack of primarily rich white kids who've hardly spend a day disadvantaged in their lives - but ultimately, we're not losing that much. The reasons given to keep the Chief mostly seem to side along the lines of wanting a symbol (this symbol that pisses off half of the campus and does its best to undermine unity and school spirit) and thinking that it (the Chief) is not a big deal. It's not fair to impose assumed standards of representation (aka the white rich norm) on the Native American population. The pro-chief people don't have someone from their own social group running around on the field (that they know, can identify with, and truly understand) but instead an inaccurate image of another social group - one that other group doesn't like. Suffice to say, just because it's not a big deal to you, doesn't mean it's not a big deal to others, and you're not important enough to tell them what's a big deal.
I just don't honestly see much harm in taking the Chief out of the picture. You make a lot of people happy, you make some feel like they have less reason to have school pride, and you cause the University to lose some money. But on the whole we gain a better campus atmosphere and start respecting the rights of people whom our ancestors nearly eradicated, displaced, and failed to include in the American Dream.
SO, the rationale behind my switch in opinions. 1) There is a significant Native American population offended by the Chief, 2) The advantages of keeping the Chief are few and not founded on solidarity, but instead comfort (or complacency), 3) The argument is not just symbolic for everyone, 4) There are bigger better causes, but dismantling the Chief is still a good cause and worth doing - by doing so we can also help other more worthy causes, like addressing racism on campus or increasing funding for cultural and diversity related programs, and lastly 5) The Chief on the whole hurts our school spirit more than he helps it - having no mascot, while might make football games less exciting, would better the University environment more overall.
So it would be a bit irresponsible of me to not propose a solution to the void created by the Chief. I say we employ a dinosaur or a robot as a mascot.
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