Quotable quotes from the current president of the Champaign County Bar Association, a Chief Illiniwek supporter:
“The board has no backbone,” said John Gadau, a Champaign lawyer and member of the Honor the Chief Society who has spent thousands of dollars to retain the mascot. “The rumor is, they’ve already got another name picked out for Illinois. We’ll be the Spineless Chickens.”
[…]
I asked Gadau how he felt about the Oglala Sioux tribe requesting the regalia be returned.
“If you want to get into cliches, the first thing that comes to my mind is Indian giver,” Gadau actually said. “We bought it. It’s ours.” [emphasis mine]
Illinois Still on the Offensive (Mike Wise in the Washington Post)
One of the objectives of the Champaign County Bar Association, according to their website, is “Preservation of the High Standards of Integrity, Honor and Courtesy in the Legal Profession.” So they’ve got that going for them.
Cartoon by Lalo Alcaraz (via American Indian Sports Team Mascots)