Joe Paterno Dies, Nation Mourns…?

Joe Paterno, who served as assistant and head coach for Penn State’s football team for 62 seasons, passed away yesterday, January 22, 2012, from complications with lung cancer. Many are mourning the death of this football “legend,” despite the fact that he was fired from his coaching position in November due to child sex allegations against his assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky. Reports allege that Paterno knew Sandusky was sexually abusing children on school property, and did not report the matter to authorities. The alleged abuse started as far back as the 1990s, and at least seven people have now stepped forth to file charges against the assistant coach.

Joe Paterno (right) with assistant coach Jerry Sandusky in 1999

While I try to lead a relatively peaceful life mandating forgiveness, understanding and respect for human life, the world’s response to the death of Joe Paterno leaves me feeling betrayed, uneasy and, ultimately, very angry. As far as my personal life goes, my Facebook news feed was bombarded yesterday with “R.I.P. JoePa” statuses, thanking him for all he did for Penn State and for the sport of football at large. More importantly, every news article I read seems to idolize Paterno, focusing on his coaching accomplishments and only mentioning the scandal as if it was an unfortunate incident for which we should feel sorry for him. Most disturbing, perhaps, are the repeated claims that losing his position at Penn State perhaps hastened his death.

Really, people? I understand that when a person dies, it is reverentially customary to focus on their accomplishments rather than their downfalls, but this is truly an exceptional case. Whatever Joe Paterno “did for football” (And what does that even mean, anyway?), he still allowed numerous boys to be sexually assaulted at the hands of an adult male. I mean no disrespect, but let us be realistic here: If Michael Devlin, the man who was found responsible for kidnapping Shawn Hornbeck, hiding him in his home and physically, psychologically and sexually abusing him for five years, suddenly passed away, would we mourn the loss by remembering all he “did for” the Imos pizza joint in Kirkwood? I would hope that we most certainly would not.

I remember the day Joe Paterno was fired, and I remember seeing footage on the national news of people holding a vigil outside his residence, crying and hugging one another, leaving candles and flowers. Disturbingly, it seems as though people like to believe that his accomplishments as a football coach warrant exemption from any guilt. Many cling to the idea that he was simply an innocent bystander, and should not be held responsible for Sandusky’s actions. But when did a coaching longevity record become more important to us than the health and well-being of our children?

Here’s a wake-up call, people: Joe Paterno knew Jerry Sandusky was sexually abusing boys, and he did nothing to stop it. That makes him just as responsible as Sandusky himself. And we want to remember him for his coaching record? Please. Acknowledge his accomplishments, but don’t try and downplay the fact that he played a major role in irreparably destroying the lives of numerous children.