As a four-year Izzone member, I very much was looking forward to the annual celebration of MSU basketball at this year’s Izzone Campout. It turned out to be just as fun as I expected, but there was one part of the event that really irked me.
After the MSU hockey team’s loss to No. 9 Alaska, the Izzone members who were in attendance had to walk through a large group of sign-holding protesters between Munn Ice Arena and Munn field, where the campout was taking place.
These protesters were present because they felt it was important to stand up against sexual assault, specifically in regards to the allegations surrounding two unnamed MSU basketball players.
Let me be clear, I respect everyone’s rights to assemble and speak freely; after all, this is America. What I do not respect is when a failure to acknowledge a fact is used as the basis for a political statement.
These protesters were armed with signs that shamed us basketball fans for “cheering rape” by supporting our team and head coach Tom Izzo for not punishing those involved in the incident in August publicly.
I do not take personal offense to this, as I know my purchase of season tickets does not translate to me supporting the sexual assault of anyone. What does offend me is that these individuals refused to look at the situation from a factual standpoint.
They are blinded by what they believe happened, rather than what police and lawyers concluded from their investigation.
Yes, I have heard the story of the incident, and while I do admit some of it does sound sketchy, it by no means proves that those involved were guilty of a crime.
If no charges were filed, that means that the investigators did not find adequate evidence to prove a crime was committed. That’s a fact.
And for those who believe Izzo is somehow in the wrong for not punishing the two players publicly, think clearly about the situation: The two players only were accused, not charged or convicted of a crime; because of this, their names were withheld.
If Izzo were to suspend them, he allows the public to know who the accused were, thus ruining their reputations. He’s not going to do that to a couple of college kids.
We all should have more respect for the American justice system as a whole. In our country, one is innocent until proven guilty, not the other way around.
I agree with the protesters that sexual assault is something that we need to rid our society of, but their disrespect for the justice system in regards to the basketball team was wrong.
None of us witnessed the incident in question; therefore we must trust those whose job it is to uncover the truth with their process and subsequent conclusion.
Utilizing our First Amendment rights is a great tool for accomplishing social change, but those who choose to use them should not ignore facts in the attempt to prove a point.
Dan Schmidt, history senior
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