February 16, 2007

The Native American House recognizes the significance of the Board of Trustees' action in announcing that “Chief Illiniwek” will no longer perform at athletic events. Now it is time to heal and take responsibility for the history of “chief illiniwek” on our campus. To that end, we expect that the University will act constructively in response to the Oglala Sioux requests and return the regalia to its rightful place. We want to honor and thank all of those who have worked so hard and long on this issue. And while this is a moment of reflection, we know that retiring the performance of the mascot does not solve campus climate issues, and we will continue to work with the campus and the community to address misinformation and miseducation about indigenous peoples, histories, and cultures.

The University of Illinois Board of Trustees has just released a press release saying that Chief Illiniwek will no longer perform at U of I games.

More coming.

There has been 9 inches of snow so far today with 4-6 more inches coming and wind gusts over 40 MPH. Country roads are closed. The bus system will operate through 7 pm tonight and is scheduled to resume Wednesday morning but be prepared for delays. The downtown post office is open. Urbana & Champaign schools are closed today and tomorrow. The University has not yet decided to close tomorrow. Today, the University stalled until 9 am to close campus. Some suspect the University is giving its 70,000 employees the shaft by only paying those who showed up at 8 am for work today. Local Commentary & the Chancellor's e-mail follows.

No Weapon Can Replace Good Police Work: Response to Sheriff Dan Walsh’s Report On Tasers

Monday night, February 5, 2007, Sheriff Dan Walsh gave a report on Tasers to the Justice Committee of the Champaign County Board. Sheriff Walsh was on the defensive and at times indignant as he argued that the Taser is a “humane” weapon, even in spite of the discovery that 14-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Department William Alan Myers had abused inmates with a Taser in the jail. In November 2003, the Sheriff’s Department purchased Tasers and they went into use a year later. He gave a previous report on Tasers in May 2004 and since his tune has not changed: Tasers are a useful weapon to protect officers and protect citizens. He echoed the Taser manufacturer’s own advertisements, “Tasers Save Lives.”

The First Funeral For the Chief? A recap of the February 1 Forum on Race, Power, and Privilege at UIUC.

1,700 people fit into Foellinger Auditorium.

The audience was mostly comprised of university students and faculty. Crashing the party very prominently, were the representatives, about 50 in number, from the Chicago Native- American Center who set the tone, literally with a drum, throughout the 2-hour plus forum. What seems new to The Longest Chief Debate Battle of the Century, was the willingness of very top-level U of I Administrators to be personally prosecuted in a public arena, with their mouths kept shut even. It was an unprecedented trial and long-time observers could never imagine a Morton Weir, a Stanley Ikenberry, a Michael Aiken or a James Stukel letting themselves be lured into such an unseemly publicity trap. The awkwardness of the Unlucky Six: President Joseph White, Chancellor Richard Herman, Provost Linda Katehi, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Renee Romano, Faculty Senator Vernon Burton, and Dean of Students William Riley could not be hidden.

Wednesday, Feb. 7, from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.
Champaign County Courthouse, downtown Urbana, Main and Vine, Courtroom A

Press conference at noon lunch break
with Chairman Fred Hampton, Jr.
at the Independent Media Center (old Urbana post office behind the Courthouse)

On Wednesday, February 7, a judge will hear testimony from several witnesses in an attempt to gain Patrick Thompson a new trial. In July 2006, Thompson was found guilty of home invasion and sexual abuse. Thompson’s new attorney, Robert Kirchner, is claiming that Thompson received ineffective counsel and has not had a fair trial. On January 5, 2007, six witnesses appeared in the first day of the post-trial hearings. This Wednesday, Thompson’s former attorney Harvey Welch will take the stand, along with Thompson himself, the accuser, and others. We will be holding a press conference at the noon lunch break with Chairman Fred Hampton, Jr., prison activist and founder of the Prisoners of Conscience Committee (P.O.C.C.).

A screenshot of Chief Illiniwek as he appeared in "a short look back on racism" on the Colbert Report, Comedy Central (note logo on the bottom), February 1st, 2007.

Here's the video on YouTube:

Media Reform Activists Come Together in Memphis
By Marcia Zumbahlen and Brian Dolinar

The 2007 Media Reform conference organized by Free Press met in Memphis, Tennessee this year. After holding conferences in Madison and St. Louis, this year’s organizers are to be congratulated for taking the event to the South, where many stories go untold. Public i journalists Marcia Zumbahlen and Brian Dolinar attended the conference, along with several other independent media activists from Urbana-Champaign. The Media Reform conference was a great coming together of media policy analysts and media makers.

After reading the January 17, 2007 appeal by the Oglala Sioux for the return of the regalia, including its eagle feathers, which the University of Illinois obtained for use by its “chief illiniwek” mascot in the 1980s, I realized that something nearly as disturbing as the University’s appropriation of the image of Native Americans for sporting purposes is in play. I recalled the trouble an area woman got into in 1994 when she constructed a “dream catcher” that included an eagle feather she had taken, gave it to the White House as a gift, and then was arrested on federal charges of violating the Bald Eagle Protection Act.

via email
Breaking News at this hour...

A press conference will be held on Thursday, 1/18/07, at 10:00 AM, in
the Conference Room at the Native American House, 1204 W. Nevada Street,
Urbana.
January 18, 2007

RESOLUTION OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE
DEMANDING RETURN OF LAKOTA REGALIA USED IN PERFORMANCE OF "CHIEF
ILLINIWEK," AND IN SUPPORT OF REQUEST BY PEORIA TRIBE OF OKLAHOMA THAT