NCAA: 'Illini', 'Fighting Illini' not offensive

Chief Illiniwek is hostile and abusive despite the University's "good intentions and best efforts," the NCAA announced Friday as it denied Illinois' appeal of its inclusion in a policy banning American Indian imagery from postseason contests.

Four weeks after receiving Illinois' appeal, the NCAA staff review committee changed its tune of the past few months, stating the names "Illini" and "Fighting Illini" are not American Indian-based and therefore do not create a "hostile and abusive" environment on campus. Chief Illiniwek, the association said, is another case.

"By continuing to use Native American nicknames, mascots and imagery, institutions assume responsibility over an environment which they cannot fully control," Bernard Franklin, NCAA senior vice-president for governance and membership, said in a prepared statement released Friday. "Fans, opponents and others can and will exhibit behaviors that indeed are hostile and abusive to Native Americans."

The NCAA refused to comment beyond Franklin's one-page statement. A request Friday to speak to media relations representatives was denied and e-mails earlier in the week were not returned.

University spokesman Tom Hardy said the University sees the NCAA response as a victory on the Illini and Fighting Illini names, but a setback in regard to Chief Illiniwek and the Board of Trustees' work toward its own decision.

"The case was basically that the Board has its self-autonomous institutional process and should be able to carry that out without interference from the NCAA," Hardy said.

Franklin's statement did not mention anything about the University's argument that the NCAA policy interfered with the Board of Trustees' own guiding principles regarding Illiniwek. In 2004 the Board adopted a "consensus resolution" policy, saying it hoped to bring Illiniwek supporters and opponents together to find the best solution for the campus and community. The Board approved a set of guidelines for coming to this resolution at its July meeting, a few weeks prior to the NCAA policy's release.

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By Courtney Linehan