the Fighting Illini

The University of Illinois' mascot has always been chief Illiniwek. In the last couple of years there has been a lot of controversy about how offensive the chief is. Some native americans found it offensive to have chief illiniwek as the U of I's mascot. They felt that it was mocking their ancestors. It was talked about for a few years about what they should do to solve this delima. Removal of the chief was one option. They board of directors discussed the issue for a long time. This years last home game was the last time the chief performed. They finally decided to remove the chief as their mascot. Any chief appearal would also be banned. This angered many loyal Illinois fans. The chief was a part of a tradition that had been with the team for decades. Most people were sad to see the chief go. I used to go to all the home games in Champaign and I remember watching the chief every game during half time. It was a very memorable experience. I was also very upset at the decision they made. I will truly miss our mascot along with many others. Now people are talking about possibly creating a new mascot. I think it would be a bad idea and no one would support it but you never know. It was a sad thing to watch the chief go.