The following is the transcript of a Foellinger balcony narrative from April 14, 2000. It is an unedited excerpt from the original Chief dialogue document.

They often proceed to state that the mascot dresses similar to that which the Illini wore. Even though this dress, this outfit that he wears is based on the Dakota style dress.

Sometimes they also say that the Illini were starved out of existence by other Indians. First off, the Illini are not extinct, there is a whole tribe in Oklahoma called the Peoria that would prove otherwise. It is also interesting that the French are not credited with supplying arms to the Iroquois confederation and the motive to war with the Illini to protect the fur trade.

It is disturbing that some of the people stating these fallacies are teachers and even principals of our schools, which brings us to a statement found in this last Sunday's newspaper, that you can't read about the Illinois Indians in any schools in Illinois and if we get rid of the Chief, then we will bury any signs that any Indians existed in Illinois. This is a falsehood. What about the Shemauger Park in Urbana, the Kickapoo Park in Danville, the Grand Village of the Kickapoo in Leroy, the statute of the fountain in West Side Park, the Kaskaskia, the Sangamon and the Kankakee Rivers and the very name of the State of Illinois itself.

None of this did I learn in school. But none of this did I learn from the mascot either. The fact that we are not taught in schools is another important issue that needs to be addressed. But how can we expect our schools to teach the truth about those whose cold dead hands this state was stolen from when they can get away with reconstructing and portraying the Indians in a way that the invaders descendents wants them to be remembered.

I have also heard much about the separation of church and state in the news. This makes we wonder when in the time that a simple prayer done properly before a game it makes such an uproar in the newspaper, but yet the University of Illinois is allowed to denigrate the same spirituality for over 70 years.

It has been asked what do we use if we get rid of the Chief? The pro-Chief people often say if you choose animals they then pretend to worry that they would have to deal with the animal rights activists. This points out that Indians are still thought of as less than human. This does not surprise me for I know a lot of people in this area that say the same thing about African Americans.

It must be, I must admit that if they misrepresent the animal with the same authenticity that the Chief is presented, they would have reason to worry. They say that we have no suggestions as to what to replace the Chief with. Obviously they did not bother to examine the entries of a fairly recent contest that gave birth to the Prairie Fire. Then there are those that resort to extortion, I will not attend any games, I will not contribute any money, I will not support the U of I.

I suggest that these people do not support the U of I now. They only support a racially stereotypical image. They also do not support the athletic department, for if they did, they would want a proper mascot, a lucky image that would help our teams reach more big dances and finish strong when they do. By the way, a consolation bowl like the Micron.Com is not a big dance, no matter how many points you score.

Calling him a symbol instead of a mascot is just pouring salt on an open wound. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a mascot is a person, animal or object which brings good luck, while a symbol is something which represents something else by comparison. You don't allow them to remain human. You just simply call them things. Human rights should not be buried by good intentions, nor should they be controlled or dictated by a democratic process. Changes come about when a public outcry finally opens the leaders' hearts and eyes so that the facts and truth become law and public policy.

I would like to just state that I don't believe that all Illini fans are racist, but I do know a lot of racists in this area and every one of them are a Chief fan. Thank you very much.

See the U.I. Dialogue on Chief Illiniwek page for more transcripts and information.