In 1971, a 15-year-old boy stood at a urinal in a Penn State bathroom when Jerry Sandusky, the then-Nittany Lions’ assistant linebacker coach, appeared behind him.
“I felt his presence behind me,” he told CNN’s Sara Ganim (whose coverage on this scandal for the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Patriot-News earned a Pulitzer Prize). “I felt his left knee on the back of my knee, and his arms went around me, grabbing my …” he stated. “He said, ‘Let me help you with this.'”
After wrenching his head backwards and hitting Sandusky in the jaw, the coach began bleeding. The two males then dropped to the ground and tussled. Once the teenager failed to escape, he was raped.
The next day, his foster mother inhaled the horrifying news and immediately called the university, placing the boy in an unbearable situation. Two men, named Joe and Jim, answered the phone. Succeeding his plea for help, they responded in way that would even cause a clown to frown.
“‘Stop this right now! We’ll call the authorities,'” the victim recalled them saying. The men couldn’t believe the boy uttered such terrible remarks towards such a prestigious individual.
Two months ago, the victim liberated his buried past to the public, sharing Joe’s identity. He was the late Joe Paterno, head coach of the football program, residing in State College, Pennsylvania, for 46 seasons.
Fast-forward to this past Tuesday, as 200-plus former Penn State football players delivered a petition to the university, with aspirations of seeing the statue dedicated to Paterno, which was taken down in light of the Sandusky scandal, resurrected on campus outside of Beaver Stadium. Additionally, the signees desire a formal apology to Sue Paterno, Joe’s wife, and the rest of the family.
Thankfully, players like Robbie Gould, the current Chicago Bears’ placekicker, neglected the discourteous request.
Good on both @spiceadams and @RobbieGould09 for not signing the #PSU Paterno-statue-restoration players' petition. More soon on this…
— Dan Bernstein (@dan_bernstein) July 6, 2016
Yet in the letter, Brian Masella, an ex-tight end and punter for the Nittany Lions, displayed his unwarranted indignation.
“We have been told during the last four-plus years that the board and administration are waiting for the appropriate time to repair the damage they created,” he stated in the release. “Now is the appropriate time. Enough is enough!”
In July 2012, the Freeh Report investigating the Penn State scandal revealed the first bits of evidence against Paterno and fellow figures, who allowed Sandusky’s reign of terror to go by the wayside. Subsequently, 10 days later, the statue of the head coach was removed from its location.
Unfortunately, Masella ignored the real “damage,” which Sandusky’s prey can’t expunge from their haunted memories. In June 2012, five months after Paterno’s death via lung cancer, the child-rapist was found guilty of 45 counts of child sex abuse, leading to a sentence of 30 to 60 years in jail. Previously, Paterno overlooked his coworker’s wretched crimes in favor of winning. How could anyone disregard his atrocious ethics?
Well, 409 victories, 112 of them returned, and the highest win total in major college football history by any coach should provide an unjustified answer.
Here is Penn State's full statement regarding the lettermen requesting the return of JoePa's statue: pic.twitter.com/w7oHjryBbP
— Josh Moyer (@ByJoshMoyer) July 5, 2016
Both fans and past student athletes bask in the glory of those who deliver unfathomable accomplishments. However, Paterno’s success gives one an opportunity to feel immune to the physical and emotional torment he caused Sandusky’s victims. Sure, a 24-12-1 record in bowl games and two national championships displays an uncanny ability to coach on the big stage but put those numbers aside for a second.
Throughout the 1970s and beyond, up to six assistant coaches supposedly observed improper conduct between Sandusky and boys, exhibiting a group of men, who wouldn’t sacrifice their lust for a 24-karat gold, bronze and stainless steel trophy.
“You won’t believe what I just saw,” one of the coaches uttered in a meeting with the Penn State coaching staff, according to a NBC News report.
Also, in April 2012, Sue Paterno reeled in $5.5 million from the university to cover the remainder of her husband’s contract with the team, implying her lips should be sealed. Somehow, though, the widow continues to battle one of the victims, who reportedly told Coach Paterno in 1976 that Sandusky sexually molested him, and his right to privacy. This claim toppled over the original allegations of the abuse solely occurring from 1994 to 2008 at Second Mile, Sandusky’s youth charity.
“I do not fear facts and I know everyone will be better served if the complete story is made public,” Sue Paterno said in a letter to the Penn State board of trustees. She clearly omits the deepening wounds of the individuals, were the information to be released.
According to After Silence — a non-profit organization which supports survivors of rape, sexual assault and sexual abuse — rape trauma syndrome (RTS), a type of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a potential result of the wrongdoings, with effects consisting of “insomnia, nausea, startled responses, and nightmares, as well as dissociative or numbing symptoms,” similar to what military veterans experience.
Imagine experiencing these traumatic issues, due to a formidable individual’s resistance to unleash the truth. Sadly, the aforementioned children did.
Hence, Penn State would be foolish to once again exhibit praise upon a statue, representing a culture of ignorance. Instead, the school should strive to uplift the survivors, as well as others, who have withstood denial.
** Eli Hershkovich is a graduate of DePaul University. Along with writing, he also works at WBBM Newsradio in Chicago. You can read his other posts here.
