The Illinois Student Senate is debating the use of the word “forever” as it continues discussion of a resolution aimed at preserving the University’s Fighting Illini identity.
On Tuesday, a senate committee removed “forever” from the title of a bill “ensuring our future as Fighting Illini,” though no other appearances of the word were removed.
Chris McCarthy, vice chair of the Committee on Campus Affairs and a senior in Engineering, said other use of the word “forever” in the body of the bill will be discussed and possibly amended on the senate floor at its meeting Feb. 6.
The resolution, sponsored by student body President Brock Gebhardt, was tabled during last week’s committee meeting in order to add more cited research to the resolution before presenting it to the floor.
Gebhardt said he thinks this resolution is separate from Campus Spirit Revival’s efforts to select a new symbol for the campus.
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“To say that the mascot and the team name are inextricably linked is false,” he said. “Think about the University of Alabama. They are the Crimson Tide. What is their mascot? It’s an elephant.”
If passed, the senate will take the resolution to the board of trustees and the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Tyler can be reached at [email protected].
