Monday, September 9, 2013

ESPN Lizzy Seeberg Sign

Photo From SportingNews
ESPN's GameDay isn't something I care about. Football could actually be filed under my apathy list. I only pay attention so I know to avoid driving (all my rage comes out in traffic). However, the reaction to this screenshot is interesting. Lizzy Seeberg is not a friend or relative of some Michigan fan. Her story is tied in with Notre Dame's history. Three years ago she was raped by a Notre Dame footballer and three years ago she committed suicide following her rape.

At first the public believed that this Michigan fan was taunting her but, in a letter posted on Deadspin, it seems that he is aiming for vindication. Lizzy Seeberg was threatened post assault by another member of the team and the investigation into her assault was not started until after her death. This injustice is what brings the author to write:
Which, after all of that, brings me to the topic of the day - that HI LIZZY SEEBERG sign on College Gameday. In short, it was done to show that she isn't forgotten, and that people do know and care about her story. Even if her school refuses to acknowledge it, there are some people out there who do.
Much of what else he writes past this point seems to be toting the great morality of Michigan and our Football. I see great hypocrisy in this, and think that without recognizing our faults, we can't grow past rape culture any more than Notre Dame can. Administrators at George Washington University are moving in the right direction by recognizing statistics  and implementing sexual assault education for athletes. Something similar, like an expansion of SAPAC, would be a good use of Ross's recently donated money.



2 comments:

  1. Lizzie Seeberg filed a police complaint that she was the victim of an unwanted sexual advance; she never said she was raped.

    The lie continues.

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  2. Whenever I see the NFL "go pink" for breast cancer, I wish that they would take on an issue like this. But it's so safe...I mean, who *doesn't* want to cure breast cancer?! But they can say, "See how pro-woman we are?!?!" If they took on something like anti-rape or anti-sexual harassment, it might actually make a difference.
    (This is not to say that the "go pink" thing hurts in any way)

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