Dear Penn State Students,
On Wednesday night, November 9th, many of you protested/rioted because your football coach was fired before he could end his career “with dignity” after his last home game. You probably think this signals to the world how much you love your school and support your athletic program. Or, maybe you aren’t caring much about what others think.
Either way, let me give you an outsider’s perspective on how your actions are being interpreted by others.
Your social protest makes it appear that you care more about your football program that the young children who were raped at the hands of a sexual predator. While you may not think that Coach Paterno is guilty of anything (having done his legal due diligence), there are several facts you may want to consider before lodging another protest:
According to the Grand Jury testimony, a graduate assistant--current assistant coach Mike McQueary--walked into the Penn State locker room in 2003 to find Jerry Sandusky anally raping a 10-year-old boy. Do you understand what that means? He was sodomizing a fifth grader.
Think back to what you were doing when you were 10. In fact, if you are currently a freshman in college, you were 10 years old in 2003. You were probably in 5th grade, enjoying being one of the older kids in elementary school, looking forward to recess with your friends, hoping that maybe your mom would let you watch SpongeBob after school. Now imagine being that kid, and being raped by a middle-aged man. Are you having second thoughts about your actions yet?
Now, after McQueary saw Sandusky anally raping a young boy (I want to say it again, so you don’t forget), he walked out. The next day (yes, he waited until THE NEXT DAY), McQueary told Coach Paterno a watered-down version about Sandusky “fondling” a young boy, and Paterno passed the story along to the Athletic Director, Tim Curley.
Two weeks later, Sandusky had to turn in his keys to the locker room.
Let me say that again…
TWO WEEKS after he raped a 10-year-old boy, Sandusky was punished by having to turn in his keys to the locker room.
No arrest. No jail time. Continued access to young victims.
Your “protest” tells the world that you condone sexual violence against children. Failing to act when a child is victimized is almost as bad as committing the act in the first place. Almost.
You believe that Coach Paterno should be allowed to coach one last game “out of respect”, even though he had knowledge that an assistant coach was sexually assaulting young boys and never even told the police. Your coach might have met his legal obligations, but he failed the more important moral obligation of being a decent human being.
Coach Paterno and Mike McQueary should be hanging their heads in shame. They should be crying themselves to sleep, and thanking the good Lord above that Sandusky never preyed on their children (or grandchildren).
Perhaps someday, Penn State rioters, you will be older and wiser. Not likely, but maybe. Perhaps someday you will have children of your own, and know what many of us are feeling right now—the anger and frustration that an innocent child was harmed beyond belief and potentially scarred for life (physically and mentally) due to the actions of a selfish, amoral rapist.
The horrible truth is that Coach Paterno allowed this to occur on his watch. He knowingly allowed a sexual predator to remain on his coaching staff and have contact with children. And (say it with me), he never called the police.
Your protest over the “disgrace” of Joe Paterno signifies that your moral compass is just as broken as his is. I suggest you start protesting the true miscarriage of justice—the rape of young children, rather than the end of a football legacy.
Very sincerely,
Christina DeJong
Associate Professor
School of Criminal Justice
Michigan State University
P.S. Just so you have no doubt about what to do if you see a child being sexually assaulted:
1. Try to stop it if you can.
2. If you can’t stop it yourself, yell and scream to get the attention of others.
3. Call the police. Immediately.
UPDATE: Here's another piece on this issue focused on the survivor viewpoint.
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10 comments:
A great letter and I hope many will read it and consider it carefully. I was so disappointed by the responses of PSU students but I also believe those students protesting did not represent the majority of students at the University.
"Think back to what you were doing when you were 10." Worrying about book reports, organizing my stationery, teaching our gerbils tricks, just beginning to learn how to flirt. I cannot get my mind around it - to think that someone came in, witnessed that, and left. Just left.
Fantastic post.
Great letter! You hit the nail on the head! These men, especially Paterno and McQueary, could have stopped a predator years ago. They could have been the heroes of the day and created an even more important legacy for themselves. Instead they will be seen as accomplices in the eyes of many. Shame on them all and shame on the rioters for not realizing what is actually happening.
Bravo.
Part 1: (Sorry, these long posts WILL stop soon):
It is nearly impossible to disagree with really any of the sentiments expressed here. In reality, like many mass demonstration situations, there are also just trouble makers out there in the world who like to add fuel to any fire. Also we should remember, the media likes to portray stories in a way that creates a lot of buzz. I suspect those crowds in UnHappy Family had very diverse agendas.
This all said, I will attempt to offer up a small voice of support for their actions. This is quite ironic because I generally feel that little sympathy or support for much of what college students protest about. That said, I generally am not impressed with the level of thoughtfulness that goes into student protests. One thing that has struck me in recent years, particularly at it relates to this Occupy movement and the involvement of young people therein, is that college students desperately want something and someone to believe in. A good part of being in college, being educated, and being young with typically very few serious responsibilities is to be naïve. Being naïve is really healthy – it gives young people a fresh perspective on life – without the same baggage that us old people have.
As a Penn State alum, as a very serious Catholic, as a person who is very serious about politics – I am left wondering after the last decade, can we really believe in anything anymore? We have collectively been let down in such profound ways by people we looked up, people we believed in, people that inspired us. Take Bernie Madoff – I mean, this guy was deeply connected to the Jewish community, to the philanthropy community – they believed in him because he was key to helping them achieve their life dreams. John Edwards was someone so much bigger than a political candidate to some – we want peole to believe in so bad – like the good ole’ days when we had icons. In some very small way (please, I really understand this is problematic) to support Joe Paterno is not to abandon the victims. This really is like a process of profound grieving – to believe that Penn State, Joe Paterno, the President, the Board of Trustees (which should now be dissolved) did what they did is to believe that just about everything in life is a lie. PSU has a mentality, they could lose but at least they had JoePa – he was bigger than the institution. To my dad, priests were the one safe haven in an otherwise sordid, evil world. We couldn’t sleep over friends’ houses, but we could do anywhere with a Priest. Priests were it; the Church was it. Purity at its best. It was devastating in ways very few either non-Catholics or non-religious people can grasp – to be so seriously betrayed by the Church and/or priests is shattering in such profound ways. For some in the PSU community, the denial will take time. JoePa could never, would never betray children, the community, the institution of college athletics like this – it simply is not possible in their minds.
Part 2:
Some dimension of what you are seeing at PSU (not all of it, but some small part) is such profound grieving that I suspect they cannot even articulate. Being naïve means that it is so hard to accept profound betrayal from the one area of stability and purity that seems to be bigger than anything else. People love this guy, I mean love him in deep and personal ways. It makes no sense I understand this, but for many in the PSU community, that is what JoePa represented. The grandfather, the priest, the confidant that was the Beacon of purity in an otherwise chaotic world. This is not to be melodramatic. This is serious grieving. But they also need to recognize, this grieving is pale into comparison to the damage to these victims. One of the hardest things in life is to come to terms with deep betrayal. How many mothers refuse to accept their husbands rape their children? They cannot accept the betrayal - it is something they cannot comprehend.
It is hard for me to write this because I support his firing and now put him a half-step above Sandusky. But to polarize a “we versus them” idea does little to recognize the depth of the hurt and pain caused by this sadistic set of events.
Ok, let the bashing of my comments begin!
Blogger ate my earlier post! It went something like this:
I LOVED your post, ShockProf, but I get your point too, Scoob. It doesn't make the student protests any less tone-deaf or douchey, but I hear what you're saying about their actions being more about misguided/misdirected grief than outright denouncement of the victims. Still, it sure comes across that way to outsiders...
Thank you. This letter says exactly what I have been feeling as I watch the news. All I keep asking is...what about the victims. Where is there voice in any of the news commentary? Why isn't anyone speaking up for them and the long term struggles they will have to come to terms with what has happened to them. I say come to terms, so they can move on and have a normal life because the reality of being raped will never go away. It is a ghost...ever present in the shadows.
WOW, what a eye-opening letter. Yes, I too believe that the Penn-State rioters acted disgusting and should be ashamed of themselves. I believe there actions told the world young children being raped is ok, and a coach is more important. Your letter puts into words how many people are feeling. Hopefully, this perspective effects at least one rioter.
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