The Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal that rocked Penn State University and football fans across the nation culminated this week in an unprecedented fine of $60 million against the school and severe sanctions for the Division I football program. The Nittany Lions are banned from the postseason for four years, will lose 20 football scholarships a year for four seasons and had 14 seasons of football victories from the late coach Joe Paterno vacated.
There's been no shortage of commentary on the issue: Was the NCAA too quick to make the decision? What will it mean for football? What does it mean for the legacy of Paterno?
But there's also the issue of how the Penn State community will now come together. Alums have responded in force, tweeting, posting photos and defending their school – not for the actions that occurred – but to show the rest of the world they won't let this scandal be their school's best known chapter.
Some have posted photos with the "WE ARE" Penn State chant but somewhat altered. One said: "Don't let people who don't know who 'we are' ... tell us who WE ARE." It has been a rallying cry of sorts, joining together alums from long ago with recent graduates. Many have been tweeting with the hashtag #WeAreAndAlwaysWillBe. Groups on Facebook have been created so alums and current students can share their views, including one called "We Are (still) Penn State."
"This is a group dedicated to healing the scars of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, recognizing and honor the victims and rebuilding the reputation of Penn State University and its football team as one of the premier institutions of higher learning and athletic tradition not only in the country but in the entire world," the group's page said. "We still believe that 'Success With Honor' is who we are, and that Coach Bill O'Brien is the best man to carry on that tradition on and off the field. The actions of an evil man and those that enabled and apologized for him do not define us, and it is our responsibility to write the next chapter in the history of Penn State."
Patterson Weaver, a lawyer who graduated from Penn State in 2001, posted a lengthy note on Facebook describing how he cannot reconcile what happened with the school he knows. Weaver said the world should know the actions of the few responsible should not define the culture of the university as a whole.
Weaver has given CNN permission to post his note in entirety below:
"Apparently, Sports Illustrated will run a cover this week that reads 'We Were Penn State.' Sports Illustrated and so many others clearly have no understanding of who We are. As a second-generation Penn State grad, I have grown up idolizing Penn State, Joe Paterno, and the excellent institution of higher learning that Penn State was, is, and will always be. I am one of hundreds of thousands that consider the Penn State community something unique and special. This goes beyond a football field. This goes beyond school pride. The culture at Penn State, in no small part because of Joe Paterno, taught all of us how to be better people, better friends, and better members of our families and our community.
"So how do I reconcile that with the allegations that a few individuals, including Joe Paterno, remained silent about the terrible actions of Sandusky? Honest answer is I can’t. The allegations do not gel with what each of us learned from our university, and yes, from Joe Paterno. Penn State has always been a beacon of how to do things the right way. Of putting academics and building quality young men and women ahead of fame and wins. I cannot reconcile these allegations with the culture that helped mold who I am. The culture that helped teach me that success is only sweet when done right. That a loss with integrity is better than a win without it. That who we are as men and women is more important than fleeting glory. I cannot reconcile what people are saying of my school with the school I lived and experienced.
"But then, that’s how I know that Penn State is what we all know it to be. The apparent actions of a few individuals were tragically void of ethical wisdom or compass. But they are not Penn State. I am Penn State. We are Penn State. All of us. The hundreds of thousands that have become better people because of our school and the unique community it fosters. I find it sadly amusing that the NCAA handed down such unprecedented sanctions partly to, apparently, try to change the culture at Penn State. Clearly they know nothing about the culture at Penn State.
"But they are not alone. The media and social media frenzy that has arisen around this tragedy contains a shocking amount of glee and venom. For years many from rival schools and society generally despised Penn State and Joe Paterno for building our reputation on the motto Success With Honor. For being so squeaky clean and selfless that the football team did not even put individual names on its jerseys. They looked at Penn State with disdain, as self-righteous and egotistical. This tragedy is exactly what they have hoped for. With glee they can point at the tragic moral misjudgments of a few individuals as supposed proof of a fundamental character flaw of the community as a whole. With delight they can scream from the rooftops, tearing their robes, that the whole university must be punished, that they must be made an example. And with their own self-righteousness, the NCAA demonstrated their moral superiority by acting as judge, jury, and executioner in handing down sanctions so unprecedented that, some say, they will not only spell the end to the football program as we know it but to the prestige and pride of the whole school.
"These individuals seem to want us alumni to stand on the highest hills, screaming in anguish as we rip and tear our degrees into a thousand pieces, burning our Penn State belongings, and then burying ourselves in the mud in shame as we screech, weep, and wail about how we must repent for attending such an institution, how we were once Penn State, once unique and admired, but no longer.
"But we won’t. The actions of a few do not define us. The knee-jerk reactions of others will not end us. Our school taught us more than organic chemistry and music theory. It taught us to persevere. To overcome. To succeed – with honor. That is who WE are. That is what WE are.
"On September 1, Penn State will play its first game of the season against Ohio University. I wish I could be there. I wish I could hear what the world will hear. The earth-shattering cries of more than a 100,000 people, echoing from Erie to Scranton, from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, of WE ARE PENN STATE. The cheer will not be merely for football. It will be for all of us. It will be a declaration that we are more than this tragedy. That we will not go quietly into the night in despair and shame. That we will improve, overcome, persevere, and excel – with honor.
"So to those so gleeful over the tragedy and the repercussions that have befallen Penn State, to those that so happily write us off as defeated and finished, to those that want to discount and disparage our pride, tradition, and principle of Success With Honor, I have bad news.
"WE ARE, AND ALWAYS WILL BE, PENN STATE."
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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Time to focus on education and clean up your house.
I don't think the beef is with the Penn State alumni, unless there were those who saw the abuse, knew about it and stayed quiet about it instead of reporting it. Evidently, there were quite a few of those.
The only tragedy here is the good names of Coach Paterno and Coach Sandusky being besmirched. We alumni need to stick together.
Same troll as PS 90, are you?
If, after a felony conviction and the Freeh Report, you honestly believe Paterno and Sandusky are being besmirched, then you're just as bad as they were, because they were counting on fools like you to be their apologists. That makes you and others like you their enablers.
The tragedy is that you PSU-worshippers are so arrogant that you would have preferred for Sandusky's victims to remain silent so your status quo wouldn't change. The PSU community is disgusting.
This article was well considered and thoughtful. It acknowledged that wrong doing occurred and made an excellent case for the student body, past and present, not being held accountable for the crimes of a few. The you opened your mouth and made a lie out of the entire article. He almost had me believing in Penn State....almost.
You are as bad as they are to make an absurd statement like that!! Your school is a moral cesspool that should be permanently closed down. Just go away. We want nothing to do with your or your dirty little school!
The fact you think it's the only tragedy that the name of a pedophile has been besmirched is the most ridiculous thing I've heard in a long time.
@ Demarcus Adams: You have got to be kidding. The only tragedy is the names of pedophiles, and those that allowed it to happen, being besmirched? Really? So kids being molested is not a tragedy? People like YOU are the reason that this ever happened in the first place. You cant get your head out of those Penn State hoodlums butts long enough to see reality. You guys at Penn State need to get over yourselves. YOU ARE NOT THE VICTIMS! You are the cause. What you thought was reality down there in Happy Valley was not reality. The culture that you thought you enjoyed was all BS. Wake up.
The GOOD names of paterno and sandusky?! Sandusky is a CONVICTED pedophile who was enabled by Paterno's desire to keep the football program from being embarassed and the university from losing money. Pride and greed took over decency. I am sure that many will remember Paterno as a loving grandfather figure but the fact was he enabled Sandusky and for over a decade. Sandusky was allowed to continue preying on young children because of JoePa's dishnorable and deplorable actions or lack of actions. Had Paterno said something to the police in 1998, he would be worthy of the praise but he didn't and he is now worthy of the condemnations.
"S," that was well said and they'd be wise to take your advice. I'm not going to hold my breath, though. It looks like "pride" is still more important than "right."
I find it interesting how Penn State doesn't want people to define who they are when in fact they have been judging and defining other schools for years. Doesn't feel so good does it Penn State?
You say this now, when it's someone else's affiliation being the subject of a witch hunt. I only hope we get to see it turned against you, and how you respond.
What a silly comment. That's just like saying if you're of German descent, you supported what Hitler did. Stop that nonsense and think beyond you emotions.
To: John Henson
Cant get a job? You should have gone to PItt instead. Quit crying.
Same old, same old...all the PSU alumni talk about is their goddam football team and school. What are they doing to help abused children...nothing.
It is what it is and you are what you are, PSU community members. You'll be living with it for a long time.
Yes, I'm a PSU grad. Yes, I'm the parent of a PSU student, Yes, of course I feel terrible - and, in fact, a bit guilty - about what happened to those boys (and the ones that no doubt found it too painful to come forward).
But I'm also sick of this circus of collective punishment. If the half-million of us in the Nittany Nation deserve collective punishment, then so do all white people for the crimes committed against black people in the south or against indians in the west. So do all Christians for the crimes they committed against Jews and others during the Inquistion or by turning a blind eye (sound familar?) during the Holocaust. So so all Catholics for crimes committed by their clergy (familar again?)
Enough with the self-righteousness. No; collective punishment is not an appropriate response to even the most heinous crimes, even though it is a lot of fun to point fingers. Remember, though, that three fingers are pointing back to you.
What nonsense. The so-called "Nittany Nation" IS collectively responsible. Be a responsible parent and send your kid somewhere else so their degree won't be scarred like yours.
But, but, but, ..., there is no but. Show me you care about the victims. Easy!
Very well said!
I did not go to PSU but all of this bigotry, hatred and finger pointing is exactly what is wrong with our society today.
Do you all think you are helping the victims by spewing hatred and judging others? If so you are sadly mistaken. Ignorance begets ignorance.
Why don't you all try to make a real difference – volunteering or donating to an organization that helps support victims of abuse and stop judging people who had nothing to do with what happened.
You cannot punish everyone for the sins of some. The students, alumni, and faculty of PSU all wish there was something they could do to take it all away, and not for their reputation, but solely for the victims. Are you ignorant enough to think that they all covered it up? They had no clue and would have stopped it if they could have. The people in power are to blame.
And if you say they let their football program become too important, and that was their sin, then there are hundreds of student at other universities- Michigan, Illinois, USC, Indiana, Ohio State, etc. where football is huge, almost cult-like. Are you going to go after all of them too? I suppose with all of your generalizations then we'd better keep an eye on all of those universities too because big football must equal a disaster just waiting to happen. So stupid.
I'm betting that the students and alumni of PSU will make a positive change . They cannot undo what has happened but they have raised millions of $ for kids with cancer over the years, over $10M just last year alone and they will turn this tragedy into something positive for victims of abuse.
And they will do it with love, not hatred like most of you.
Your comparison shows you have not learned your lesson. Because of that, it will very likely happen AGAIN.
Pretty sad to read this.
Show me you do care about the victims? How many of you honorable and proud PSU alumni made effort to support the victims? All you think now is you, you, you, football, and your school.
Google PSU for RAINN that will answer your question. I know it's hard to rant when you are armed with the facts but try to find out facts ahead of time.
will the ncaa getting 60 million dollars before criminal trials and civil trials help these victims? nope! the ncaa just lined their coffers off of the victims' misfortune. does vacationg the wins help the victims? nope. do bowl bans help these particular victims? nope. so, other than a time machine, what is going to help these particular victims? severe prison sentences for the criminals that are tried and proven guilty is their only real vindication. no punishment will be acceptable to some people, even destroying the university would not suffice.
No, that is EXACTLY what's going on....blaming an entire school for the actions of a few. Wanna get rid of the football program? Fine! Wanna blame every student for what went on with those poor boys? NOT FINE! Accusing 100,000 students that have nothing to do with this at all for what happened? Emotionally driven drivel! Grow up!
What does that even mean