[Peace-discuss] Fwd: Retiring the Chief With Dignity (?)

[Alfred Kagan]

>Date: Thu, 04 Mar 2004 11:10:44 -0600
>From: "Imani Bazzell" <ibazzell at parkland.edu>
>Subject: Retiring the Chief With Dignity (?)
>
>Friends,
>
>Below please find forwarded information on a "retire the chief" effort
>along with a pdf (Adobe Reader) attachment of a proposed billboard.
>
>While I don't know how one would retire a racist symbol with dignity
>(sort of like getting White Southerners to agree to end slavery if we
>agree to put up with them flying Conferderate flags and constructing
>momuments to racist leaders all over the damned place, and still
>allowing them to treat Black folks like shit), I'm sure this is the
>rallying call for pragmatic reasons.  I respect their efforts to try to
>move this campus and community into the 21st century, even though my
>take on it is different.  Please review and support if you can.
>
>Imani
>______________________________________________________
>Dear Colleagues -- A number of current (and former) UIUC faculty and
>community members have been meeting this academic year to discuss ways
>of supporting Chancellor Cantor, and add momentum to the effort of
>retiring the "Chief." (You may have read the recent Op-Eds by one of our
>supporters,  Robert Berdahl, past Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
>at the University of Illinois and now President of the University of
>California at Berkeley, regarding retirement of the Chief).
>
>With Cantor's decision to leave UIUC, our focus had changed to
>retirement of the Chief.  We believe that recruitment of a new
>Chancellor of Cantor's stature will be facilitated if the divisive issue
>of the Chief can be resolved this spring.  During the past year, we have
>initiated dialog with people on all sides of this issue, including
>native Americans, the Board of trustees, Roger Huddleston, and a former
>student who served as the Chief.
>
>We now have a plan for direct public relations effort, i.e., a series
>of billboards and local newspaper advertisements advocating "honorable
>retirement" of the Chief. We hope that this effort will show that there
>is an organized group of faculty and community members who believe the
>time has come for retirement of the Chief.
>
>We have gathered about $2000 in donations to support this effort, but
>would like to increase this to the neighborhood of around $6000. I am
>contacting you as possible donors to this effort. If you decide to
>support this cause, you can direct your checks to "Call to Action", 813
>West University Avenue, Champaign, IL 61820.
>
>We sincerely want to see progressive University leadership and an
>inclusive University community. Please consider contributing to this
>important effort. And feel free to forward this email to your friends
>and colleagues.
>
>Mark Clark
>
>


-- 


Al Kagan
African Studies Bibliographer and Professor of Library Administration
Africana Unit, Room 328
University of Illinois Library
1408 W. Gregory Drive
Urbana, IL 61801, USA

tel. 217-333-6519
fax. 217-333-2214
e-mail. akagan at uiuc.edu