Chief at athletic events after her young son and daughter's reaction to the Chief's dance at a basketball game. Soon, individuals and organizations, some from outside of the university, began to support the Chief's elimination. Some academic departments adopted official stances in favor of retirement of the mascot. External organizations including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National Education Association, Amnesty International, the Modern Language Association, and Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas also took positions in favor of retiring the Chief. In November 1989, the Illinois state legislature passed a resolution in support of the Chief. Student and alumni organizations, such as the Honor the Chief Society and Chief Illiniwek Educational Foundation, are dedicated to explaining and preserving the tradition of Chief Illiniwek. The Students for the Chief group formed in 1990. Among the national Native American organizations which called for the retirement of the mascot were the National Congress of American Indians and the National Indian Education Association. At the Urbana-Champaign campus, the Native American House, the American Indian Studies program, and the Native American student organizations all called for its retirement. Those in favor of retiring the Chief contended that the Chief misappropriates and misrepresents Native American culture and perpetuates harmful racial and ethnic stereotypes. They argued that this obstructed the creation of a diverse and tolerant learning community, harmed the reputation of the university, and promoted an inaccurate image of Native Americans. Those in support of the mascot claimed that he was a revered symbol representing not only a proud people but the great spirit of a great university. A 1995 ruling by the United States Department of Education found that the mascot did not violate Native American students' civil rights. Also in 1995, the state legislature approved a bill making the Chief the "official symbol" of the university, but Governor Jim Edgar's amendatory veto allowed the decision to remain with the university. On January 13, 2000, the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois passed a resolution concerning the issue of the continuation of the Chief Illiniwek performances at its athletic events. The resolution acknowledged the existence of a controversy. Pursuant to this resolution, the board retained Louis B. Garippo, a former circuit court judge in Cook County, to assist in conducting a dialogue on Chief Illiniwek. The Special Intake Session on Chief Illiniwek was