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I'm talking specifically about Chief Illiniwek's last game as the mascot for the Fighting Illini. The NCAA has a ban on the use of American Indian mascots during the postseason and hasn't allowed Illinois to host any postseason events because of the university's refusal to remove the mascot. Personally, I really don't care about the ban, whether its there or not. When you look at that picture of Chief Illiniwek, you get the feeling that this "Educate the children about Indians" BS that schools give as one of the reasons for keeping these mascots around falls just a bit short.
Its funny that with the clampdown the NCAA is currently under, this discussion is nowhere to be found in NFL circles. At least not publicly. We have the Chiefs and the Redskins in the NFL, both fairly blatant uses of Native American rhetoric. Still, I just don't care. For me, the Chiefs have no real connotation with Native Americans. When I think Chiefs, I think football first. Yes we have the Tomahawk Chop. But that is still a purely football thing for me.
In the end, I can understand why public universities have to abide by such rules. Just don't take away my Chiefs!