Current Chief Speaks

  Students who served as Chief Illiniwek have never been active in the debate, but now with the tradition ending, some of those students are talking. Dan Maloney, who serves as the current Chief says his fight isn't over. Although Wednesday's game will be the last time the Chief takes the floor, Maloney is holding on to hope that the Chief will take to the field again this fall.
   Tonight, Maloney was the keynote speaker at a Pro-Chief rally at the University of Illinois' quad. More than a hundred students and general public showed up to support  the University's symbol. The goal was to make a statement to university Leaders that students are against their decision to stop the Chief tradition. Maloney says he made an appearance at the rally to get supporters to fight harder. He says, while the last dance will have a lot of meaning, it will be the same dance supporters have loved for years. He adds, "there are some unspoken rules that we follow in terms of the way we conduct ourselves during a performance, and I am going to stick to those guidelines. I'm not looking to make any statements, I'm there to carry on the tradition in the manner in which i was chosen to do so."
    Maloney offers some hopeful words, that a lot can change between the last dance and next football season. He is part of a lawsuit filed last week to save the Chief. He argues, by taking away the Chief, the NCAA and U of I are violating his personal rights. He says, "the symbol stands for honor, tradition, loyalty, pride."
    On Friday, a judge denied an injunction, to keep the Chief on the floor, but he says he's more than willing to take up the issue again in the future. The judge ruled that what Maloney and others were fighting for was something that would not cause them irreparable harm. Although the ruling was not in his favor, Maloney says the judge's words offer him some hope that the Chief  could once again dance in the future.