Student Affairs Calendar

Joseph P. Gone’s lecture examines why Native American sports mascots—most notably Chief Illiniwek at the University of Illinois—constitute harmful racial stereotypes rather than harmless traditions. He argues that these portrayals are historically recycled and deeply inaccurate representations that depict Indigenous peoples as primitive, undermining the dignity, sovereignty, and contemporary realities of the more than five million citizens of federally recognized Tribal Nations. Drawing on both scholarly analysis and his own experience advocating for mascot removal at UIUC, Gone situates these debates within broader university efforts to manage institutional risk while continuing to sponsor popular but damaging imagery. The lecture launches At Risk U: the Past, Present & Future of Academic Freedom, a Mellon Sawyer Seminar series that explores how risk management has become a defining feature of modern U.S. universities and considers its consequences for academic freedom and democratic governance.