A question of racism at a Princeton-Yale basketball game earlier this season
I was saddened to read the article in the Feb. 22 issue of The Daily Princetonian ("Men's hoops faced racial slurs from crowd in loss at Yale earlier this season") reporting on racial slurs (verbal and on a poster) when the Tigers played Yale earlier in February.
However, when reading Gary Walters comment that Princeton would "go over and talk to the fans and tell them it's inappropriate" and the writers comment on no announcement being made urging the fans to tone down their comments, I was prompted to note two things.
First, it is not enough to "tone down" racist comments. Subtle racism is a bare improvement over what is described in this story. Second, I am often dismayed by the Princeton crowd's chant of "Sit down. You suck!" when an opposing player is taken out of the game. It is abysmal sportsmanship, puerile behavior and especially inappropriate in a general audience that includes children. I believe that chant was even used when Patrick Harvey from Harvard sat down at a point last week. Harvey was on his way to scoring 23 points (two points more than Mike Bechtold scored in his own terrific performance) and certainly earned the respect of the Tiger players and at least this basketball fan. John Crutcher
All of Yale University is not to blame for a few fans' actions
I am writing in response to the article on racial slurs at the Princeton-Yale basketball game. The article is clearly well researched and aims at a valid and important point, but unfortunately seems to slant the facts to convey its message.
The "token" chant to which the article refers did indeed take place. The article, however, (especially the paragraph quoting my conversation with Austin) leaves out the remorse and condemnation that the chant has created uniformly throughout the Yale campus. The chant is an acknowledged and lamented mistake, and was the lone incident of the crowd being insensitive. Any random remarks made by individuals (probably drunk) cannot be blamed on Yale or its fans as a whole.
For the last time, THEY WERE NOT WANTED POSTERS. The posters said "Ahmed" on top, showed a picture of his face, and "one ugly mother . . ." on the bottom. They were not even profane, let alone racist. If the player felt intimidated by these signs, that's great, because that was the point. If feelings were hurt, then perhaps the team needs self-confidence training because calling a foe ugly has not been "crossing the line" since the first grade. It amazes me that such a big deal has been made out of profanity and heckling against a team that plays against schools like Penn and Maryland, whose cheering sections are much more boisterous and offensive than the one at Yale, a fact that I know from first-hand experience.
Racism is not condoned by anyone at Yale, and measures have been taken among fans to prevent any recurrence of such undesirable incidents as the token chant. People should bare in mind, however, that an offensive, loud and obnoxious crowd goes hand-in-hand with college basketball. Watch a Duke-UNC game on TV someday; I assure you the fans are not complimenting the players' outfits. Furthermore, it is hardly fair to judge a student body of 5,000 undergraduates on the actions of one or two individuals. Luis Poza
Racial slurs and unruly fans have no place in college sports
As a Yalie living in Princeton for many years, and a long-ago Eli basketball player (albeit a bench-rider), I've had a lot of pleasure watching Tiger basketball teams, even cheering for them when they were not playing Yale. I was dismayed, therefore, and embarrassed to read of the remarks made towards Ahmed Nokali at the recent game in New Haven. At the return game last Saturday night in Jadwin I sought out Yale students to ask about the incident and was told that The New York Times story was "way overblown, that only a couple of students were involved."
Regardless, it was bad news. I have to say, however, that EVERY game at Jadwin includes ugly, obscene, and repeated chanting of the "[opposing team] sucks" phrase. Is it possible that the students do not know what that phrase means? Time to stop that juvenile stuff! Jim Harford
Read More
An open letter to President Eisgruber and VP Calhoun concerning minoritized student safety
Patrick Jaojoco, Brandi Bushman, and Humza Gondal"We — the undersigned leaders, community members, and allies of cultural affinity groups of Princeton University — condemn in the strongest possible terms the University’s utter disregard for the safety and wellbeing of its students of color."
"We — the undersigned leaders, community members, and allies of cultural affinity groups of Princeton University — condemn in the strongest possible terms the University’s utter disregard for the safety and wellbeing of its students of color."
On the occupation of Clio Hall and the treatment of Graduate School staff
Cole M. Crittenden“There are real power differentials on this campus, and we all have an obligation to be mindful of them. The students, postdocs, and faculty who occupied Clio Hall seem to have abused their privileges in the ways they treated staff as an expression of protest. That is wrong.”
“There are real power differentials on this campus, and we all have an obligation to be mindful of them. The students, postdocs, and faculty who occupied Clio Hall seem to have abused their privileges in the ways they treated staff as an expression of protest. That is wrong.”
Regulations on ‘disruption’ restrict dialogue at Princeton. Let’s change the standard.
Rishi Khanna“When Princeton administrators suppress mere disruptions tied to progressive speech, they effectively suppress a substantial portion of the speech itself.”
“When Princeton administrators suppress mere disruptions tied to progressive speech, they effectively suppress a substantial portion of the speech itself.”
