Selected Letters
Below you will find Selected Letters about the Mascot Controversy. Click on the title to view the full text of the letter.
• Why I Don't Do Interviews about the Chief
The problem with print and television journalists is that they frame the issue of Chief Illiniwek around the notion of "objectivity" as it tends to be constituted in a so-called balanced journalism.
• An Open Letter: Response to NCAA Announcement
The NCAA's announcement regarding mascots and names gave the Board of Trustees the opportunity to end this situation. Statements from the BOT suggest they will appeal.
• Claim of "Self-Determination" Does Not Exceed Tribal Sovereignty
Self-determination struggles presently carried on by American Indian nations have long histories. Indian peoples locate the authority for them in our cultures, not in the mythology of a benign conqueror.
• Trustees Appeal to NCAA is Flawed
On October 13, 2005, UIUC's Board of Trustees filed an appeal to the NCAA that cites a 1995 investigation undertaken by the US Department of Education Office of Civil Rights. The appeal selectively uses the investigation as support for the university's claim that the campus is not hostile.
• Complaint to the Office of Civil Rights
A letter by University of Illinois graduate Joseph P. Gone to the Office of Civil Rights details the campus climate created by the mascot.