Chief to say good bye...or is he?
>> Friday
Opponents of the Chief have long claimed cultural misappropriation. Which of course never happens in college sports.
This isn't even a case of a blatantly offensive image. The costume was donated by a Native American tribe in the 1980s (that sounds like an endorsement to me), the Chief figure is represented with respect and for the most part (save a few jumps), sticks to authentic Native American dances, and the Peoria Indians' Chief (descendants of the original Illiniwek confederacy) has gone on record as saying that he was in support of the Chief as recently as 10 years ago. Now he's against it. What's changed since the mid-1990s?
I am totally lost on how there is this apparently pressing need to have more diversity in hiring minority coaches, athletic directors, and university presidents, in attracting a more diverse student body, yet when it comes time for visible symbols of the University on the athletic field, the time for diversity is over. Think about it. Can you think of any major university that uses a non-white logo or mascot/symbol/character/image? I know I can't think of any single one, can you recall any non-white college sports teams' mascots that would immediately come to mind?
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