Post by blackcrowheart on Mar 28, 2007 21:06:43 GMT -5
Facebook postings alarm UI officials Group brings racial tensions to
forefront
The University's
struggle for racial tolerance took another hit, this time from comments
made on a pro-Chief Facebook group's wall.
Two students posted derogatory comments towards American Indians on the
wall of the "If They Get Rid of the Chief I'm Becoming a Racist" group
and threatened a University graduate student. These students could face
disciplinary action from the University or legal actions for hate
crimes.
The pro-Chief group has since been removed from Facebook but was formed
as far back as early November. The first controversial post was written
on Nov. 20.
"What they don't realize is that there was never a racist problem
before," wrote one of the students. "But now I hate redskins and hope
all those drunk, casino owning bums die."
But action was prompted from a second post on Dec. 2.
"Apparently the leader of this movement is of Sioux descent. Which means
what, you ask? The Sioux indians are the ones that killed off the Illini
indians, so she's just trying to finish what her ancestors started. I
say we throw a tomohawk into her face."
A press release by the University's American Indian Studies program and
Native American House brought these threats to light on Jan. 8, calling
for the University to take legal and disciplinary action against these
students.
Chancellor Richard Herman sent a mass e-mail to the members of the C-U
community explaining that the University has spent 140 years creating a
"welcoming environment" and that he "will not tolerate such violent
threats."
The incident has been referred to the Office of Student Conflict
Resolution, which will determine if the student code can apply
disciplinary action to these students. Herman said in his e-mail the
University "will take all legal and disciplinary action available."
But not every student in the group knew it harbored such extreme views.
Lizzy Cunningham, freshman in LAS, was one of the 110 members but had
never seen the postings before the issue blew up.
"I don't know what the people were thinking when they wrote them," she
said. "But they were really inappropriate."
Other pro-Chief organizations have addressed this issue, too. Students
For Chief Illiniwek, a registered student organization at the
University, came to the forefront of the conflict, attempting to
separate themselves from the negative stigma these students put onto the
pro-Chief group.
"Our organization and its members are not involved in or responsible for
the comments in question," wrote Paul Schmitt, vice president of the
student group, in a press release. "We feel that these comments
highlight the need for further education on the history of the Chief
Illiniwek tradition..."
But others feel these threats towards a American Indian student
illustrate a larger problem at the University. Wanda Pillow, director of
the Native American House and American Indian Studies program, said this
incident shows the need for campus administration and the Board of
Trustees to address the issues of race on campus, along with resolving
the debate over the Chief.
"The anti-Indian attitudes that were expressed on the webpage
demonstrate the hostile and abusive environment which persists for
people of color at the University," said Pillow in an e-mail interview.
There are Facebook groups for students who are anti-Chief, or more
broadly, against racism. Lindsey Bever, senior in LAS, created the group
"Students Against Racist Mascots." She said the Facebook group shows how
the Chief can make people unattached to what the Chief should represent.
"They may have thought it (the post) was funny at the time," she said.
"But now they may realize that it was dumb to write."
But there are other groups that try to further the fight to abolish the
use of the Chief. Ronu Ghoshal, a University alum, created an anti-Chief
group with the hope to bring more attention to the fight against the
Chief.
"I do not believe that most Chief supporters are racist or hateful
individuals," he said in an e-mail interview. "Rather, I felt that
through this group, I could express just how strongly many of us feel
about the need to remove the Chief."
The issues of race-relations on the C-U campus has been noted
specifically by James Kaplan, chairman of the Illinois Board of Higher
Education. He said the University is the only one in the state that he
knows of with specific race-related incidents, referring also to the
exchange earlier in the year between the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity and
Delta Delta Delta sorority.
Kaplan said the board works to promote diversity as a "valuable element
at universities." About the Facebook incident, he said, "When you
belittle any of us, you belittle all of us."
Chancellor Herman in his e-mail invited the community to a forum
addressing the ways to create a more welcoming campus environment. The
forum will be held on Feb. 1 at 4 p.m. in Foellinger Auditorium.
"The plans for the forum are already in place due to some theme parties
we had earlier," said Herman, adding that he hopes this will be "a way
forward, a way to declare our shared values and make sure we act on them
everyday."
forefront
The University's
struggle for racial tolerance took another hit, this time from comments
made on a pro-Chief Facebook group's wall.
Two students posted derogatory comments towards American Indians on the
wall of the "If They Get Rid of the Chief I'm Becoming a Racist" group
and threatened a University graduate student. These students could face
disciplinary action from the University or legal actions for hate
crimes.
The pro-Chief group has since been removed from Facebook but was formed
as far back as early November. The first controversial post was written
on Nov. 20.
"What they don't realize is that there was never a racist problem
before," wrote one of the students. "But now I hate redskins and hope
all those drunk, casino owning bums die."
But action was prompted from a second post on Dec. 2.
"Apparently the leader of this movement is of Sioux descent. Which means
what, you ask? The Sioux indians are the ones that killed off the Illini
indians, so she's just trying to finish what her ancestors started. I
say we throw a tomohawk into her face."
A press release by the University's American Indian Studies program and
Native American House brought these threats to light on Jan. 8, calling
for the University to take legal and disciplinary action against these
students.
Chancellor Richard Herman sent a mass e-mail to the members of the C-U
community explaining that the University has spent 140 years creating a
"welcoming environment" and that he "will not tolerate such violent
threats."
The incident has been referred to the Office of Student Conflict
Resolution, which will determine if the student code can apply
disciplinary action to these students. Herman said in his e-mail the
University "will take all legal and disciplinary action available."
But not every student in the group knew it harbored such extreme views.
Lizzy Cunningham, freshman in LAS, was one of the 110 members but had
never seen the postings before the issue blew up.
"I don't know what the people were thinking when they wrote them," she
said. "But they were really inappropriate."
Other pro-Chief organizations have addressed this issue, too. Students
For Chief Illiniwek, a registered student organization at the
University, came to the forefront of the conflict, attempting to
separate themselves from the negative stigma these students put onto the
pro-Chief group.
"Our organization and its members are not involved in or responsible for
the comments in question," wrote Paul Schmitt, vice president of the
student group, in a press release. "We feel that these comments
highlight the need for further education on the history of the Chief
Illiniwek tradition..."
But others feel these threats towards a American Indian student
illustrate a larger problem at the University. Wanda Pillow, director of
the Native American House and American Indian Studies program, said this
incident shows the need for campus administration and the Board of
Trustees to address the issues of race on campus, along with resolving
the debate over the Chief.
"The anti-Indian attitudes that were expressed on the webpage
demonstrate the hostile and abusive environment which persists for
people of color at the University," said Pillow in an e-mail interview.
There are Facebook groups for students who are anti-Chief, or more
broadly, against racism. Lindsey Bever, senior in LAS, created the group
"Students Against Racist Mascots." She said the Facebook group shows how
the Chief can make people unattached to what the Chief should represent.
"They may have thought it (the post) was funny at the time," she said.
"But now they may realize that it was dumb to write."
But there are other groups that try to further the fight to abolish the
use of the Chief. Ronu Ghoshal, a University alum, created an anti-Chief
group with the hope to bring more attention to the fight against the
Chief.
"I do not believe that most Chief supporters are racist or hateful
individuals," he said in an e-mail interview. "Rather, I felt that
through this group, I could express just how strongly many of us feel
about the need to remove the Chief."
The issues of race-relations on the C-U campus has been noted
specifically by James Kaplan, chairman of the Illinois Board of Higher
Education. He said the University is the only one in the state that he
knows of with specific race-related incidents, referring also to the
exchange earlier in the year between the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity and
Delta Delta Delta sorority.
Kaplan said the board works to promote diversity as a "valuable element
at universities." About the Facebook incident, he said, "When you
belittle any of us, you belittle all of us."
Chancellor Herman in his e-mail invited the community to a forum
addressing the ways to create a more welcoming campus environment. The
forum will be held on Feb. 1 at 4 p.m. in Foellinger Auditorium.
"The plans for the forum are already in place due to some theme parties
we had earlier," said Herman, adding that he hopes this will be "a way
forward, a way to declare our shared values and make sure we act on them
everyday."