Here at Illinois, we've been having the same debate over our nickname, the
Fighting Illini, and our mascot, Chief Illiniwek.  This debate is pretty
heated and has been going on for years.  Just this spring our local state
representative passed a law -- yes, this is what they worry about in the
Illinois house! -- anyhow, they passed a bill naming Chief Illiniwek the
official mascot of the University of Illinois!  So now, not only would it
go against 100 years of tradition to change our school's nickname, but it
would actually be against the law!
 
Incidentally, I believe our school has the blessings of the tribe we
represent, but there's a small (but boisterous!) group of fanatics on
campus who STILL find it offensive...  It's mostly other minorities (NOT
Native Americans) who use this incident to say that the U of I is racist
against ALL minorites.  Go figure...
 
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