Band’s visit to The Citadel draws a frosty reception
Altercation, cadets’ hostile reaction to halftime show seen as evidence of ‘culture war’ between the schools
By Alice Lloyd George ’09
Published in the October 22, 2008, issue
Beverly Schaefer
After booing the Princeton band’s halftime show, Citadel cadets surround the band in the stands.
The Princeton University Band has a long-standing tradition of provocative antics, but cadets at The Citadel, where the Tigers played Sept. 20 for the first time, didn’t think the jokes were funny. Instead of laughs, the band was at the center of several tense encounters and suggestions of a “culture war” between the two schools.
The first incident occurred shortly after the band entered The Citadel’s campus Saturday morning. According to band member and drill master Daniel Jaffe ’10, after a group of cadets tried to block the band’s path, the band attempted to respond to the tense situation with humor, and Jaffe called a scramble, with the 43 band members breaking formation. The cadets then began spitting at female band members, roughing up some of the male members, and breaking one band member’s clarinet as he was pushed to the ground, said band president Alex Barnard ’09.
“We had no indication of why we were being attacked at the time,” Barnard said. “We were told only later that the area on which we were marching was a part of campus that is revered.” While the march had been approved by Citadel administrators, the band later discovered that the route it had been marching along was the Avenue of Remembrance, a campus street that honors The Citadel’s fallen alumni.
Jaffe said that after witnessing this altercation, Air Force and Marine Corps administrators ordered the cadets to stand down, and the band was provided with an escort to continue its march around the campus.
Later in the day the action moved to the football stadium. With Princeton holding a 17–7 lead (Princeton ultimately lost), the band took the field for its halftime show, but the announcer was drowned out by nonstop boos and shouts. Hecklers in the 13,000-strong crowd screamed, “Go home, Prince-ton!” and “Homos!” A number of Citadel cadets said that they were offended by the band’s gestures. (Videos of the incident have made their way onto the YouTube video-sharing Web site.)
“Although we were concerned that our nontraditional style could be off-putting to those unfamiliar with it, The Citadel assured us that they were excited to have us,” Barnard said. “We worked collaboratively and at length with The Citadel to make sure our script met their approval.”
Barnard acknowledged that the band’s brand of humor could be misconstrued, and he apologized for “sexually suggestive acts performed by two members” during the halftime show. “These were not part of our script, not part of any typical band routine, and were completely inappropriate,” he said.
According to Barnard, when the band members returned to the stands after their performance, a group of about 20 cadets surrounded them and began screaming at them. Some band members were reduced to tears, and the cadets moved away only after police and higher-ranking officers intervened.
The events prompted an apology from The Citadel’s president, retired Air Force Lt. Gen. John W. Rosa, who said The Citadel “must hold cadets to a higher standard.”
“No one I have spoken to in the band can remember any instance previously in which the band has been subject to physical assault,” Barnard said in an e-mail. “Although band members are disappointed about the incident, we have moved on quickly.”
The incidents drew national news coverage after initial coverage in The Daily Princetonian and The Post and Courier of Charleston. A week after the Prince article was published it had attracted more than 575 comments on the newspaper’s Web site, the most ever. Postings and letters to the editor came both from Princetonians and from Citadel fans.
“The cadets’ sacred, honorable institution was invaded by ‘long-haired liberals’ banging on flamingos, so the cadets lashed out,” wrote Michael van Landingham ’08 of Charleston. “I don’t blame the Princeton University Band for what happened because it would have been impossible for it to understand The Citadel.”
Many letters supported the band, but the Charleston Post and Courier expressed a different view. “Heck, instead of a tongue lashing, the entire Corps of Cadets should be given a medal for standing up for their school,” wrote columnist Ken Burger. “The Princeton band, meanwhile, should be ashamed. All those pseudo-intellectuals and not a single brain among them.”
Princeton’s vice president of campus life, Janet Dickerson, suggested that the administration was disappointed about the events that took place at The Citadel and supported the Princeton band. She said senior Citadel administrators had “vetted and approved” the script of the band’s performance before the game. “We appreciate the importance of being sensitive to other institutions’ cultures and traditions, and that sensitivity continues to be communicated to all members of our community who interact with members of other campuses,” she added.
Both schools “could have done a better job of communicating with one another,” Citadel spokesman Lt. Jeffrey Perez said in an e-mail. “With the lessons learned, we all look forward to a great time when we play next year at Princeton,” Perez said.
7 Responses
to Band’s visit to The Citadel draws a frosty reception
Jean Telljohann Says:
2008-10-22 17:25:33
Regarding this comment: “No one I have spoken to in the band can remember any instance previously in which the band has been subject to physical assault,” Barnard said in an e-mail. Sadly, this is not the first time band members have been assaulted "in the line of duty." In the late '70s, the PUB traveled to the Meadowlands for the Princeton-Rutgers game. Rutgers band members vandalized the PUB bus and assaulted and threatened band members. Then-PUB President Tom Raubach '79 brought a forceful and eloquent complaint to the president of Rutgers University, resulting in financial compensation for property damage and an official apology to the PUB. Shortly thereafter Rutgers was dropped from the schedule, ending the longest rivalry in collegiate football.
Scott Yost *87 Says:
2008-10-24 17:37:47
As a Citadel faculty member and Princeton graduate alumnus, I was looking forward to this game, although I normally avoid football. In fact, I had just come to The Citadel after teaching at Princeton last year, and went to the game mostly to see the band's "provocative antics". I found out later that I had missed the real show, and I still have no clear understanding of what happened on campus, even after talking to cadets who were there. It is hard to understand how the cadets, who are normally some of the most well-mannered, serious students I have known, allowed themselves to be so easily goaded into setting aside their honor and discipline. The incident prompted many questions from students who knew I came from Princeton. One student asked me if it is a Princeton tradition to make fun of everyone else. I tried to point out that they were making fun of themselves too, but the band should consider this in places where their behavior could be seen as snobbery. Also, as the band apparently realizes, some of their on-field antics were out of place at a family event. On the other hand, the cadets involved need to learn much about self-control, and understand that this type of behavior brings dishonor to The Citadel. When people ask which side I'm on, I tell them both, and that I hope next year's meeting in Princeton will be conducted with far more civility.
Elizabeth Kamerzel Says:
2008-10-26 01:47:39
In regards to the article “Band’s visit to The Citadel draws a frosty reception” in the October 22nd issue of PAW, and specifically the quotations within attributed to Mr. Ken Burger, columnist for Charleston’s Post and Courier:
As I began to read the numerous articles related to this unfortunate incident, Mr. Burger’s among many, I was prepared to feel angry due to the actions of The Citadel cadets; their behavior was reprehensible. I believe anyone who is not frightened of so-called ‘liberals’ will agree. However, the cadets of The Citadel may still be considered young by many, and as such, their actions perhaps weren’t those of mature individuals acting independently or wisely. Mr. Burger has no such excuse. As saddened and appalled as I am by the cadets’ actions, I find myself doubly disgusted by the way that he commended some of the most shameful types of human behavior. Is spitting on another human being, pushing someone to the ground, and verbally harassing him or her medal-worthy behavior? We Princetonians may be “pseudo-intellectuals”, but I firmly believe it would take a good deal more than an off-color field show for most Princeton students or alumni to act like the worst sort of barbarians. It saddens me that the young people who are going to be entrusted with the safety of our nation are so quick to endanger and turn careless might on their fellow citizens. Ivy-league or not, we are all Americans, and more importantly, we are all human beings. It would serve the cadets and Mr. Burger well to remember that.
William J. Ledger, M.D. Says:
2008-10-28 11:03:47
The PAW description of the undisciplined behavior of members of the Corps of the Citadel towards our band members both on campus and in their home stadium raises the question of what to expect next fall when these two schools are scheduled meet on the Princeton gridiron. If these cadets could not be controlled in South Carolina, should we expect better behavior in New Jersey? I think Princeton has three options and list them in my order of preference.
1. Cancel the game. For me, this is not a rivalry to foster.
2. Play the game, with the proviso that neither the Citadel Band nor the Corps should attend.
3. Play the game, appealing to Citadel’s administration to maintain control.
If the third option is taken, I for one will not attend the game. I don’t want to be privy to uncivilized behavior off the field when all this former Princeton varsity football letterman wants is to watch both teams give their all on the field. As a high school football and basketball player in Western Pennsylvania, I was an unwilling spectator to mob brawls, and that experience was demeaning to everyone present. For me, those unpleasant memories cannot be erased. What happened in Charleston was a serious breach of sportsmanship and should be treated as such.
Jean Telljohann '81 Says:
2008-10-31 09:29:33
Dr. Ledger raises the point, "this is not a rivalry to foster." I would be curious to understand why the University decided to add this school to the schedule and whether they are reconsidering continuing this rivalry. Most schools do not share our priorities (academics vs. athletics) or our quirky band culture. As I note in my earlier post about a violent, ugly incident at Rutgers, we've seen the result of contests with these schools before.
Laurie Henneman '90 Says:
2009-02-05 11:56:20
I am certainly one of the few (if there are any other) Princeton Band alumni who also participated in Air Force ROTC long enough to attend a summer boot camp. So I know something of the behavior and discipline expected of cadets.
I don't know what they are teaching at Citadel, but I doubt that anything like this would have been allowed to transpire at one of the "real" military academies.
The bottom line which no one seems to mention in all the stories about the incident is that (although I am confident that the band's own reports are accurate, and their usual antics were highly tempered) what the band said or did simply is irrelevant.
Military discipline is not supposed to go out the door simply because one feels insulted. Even apart from the disturbing implications that these students were apparently completely closed-minded to any ideas that they perceived conflicted with their own, it is particularly disturbing that the "officers" at a school like this, which claims to be teaching military discipline, treats such behavior as a convenience that is thrown out the door when cadets are "provoked."
I absolutely back all those who feel the Citadel game next year should be cancelled. I would have been thrown out of ROTC immediately for similar behavior, and it sounds like the Citadel students received some token slap on the wrist.
As far as I am concerned, the whole institution is a joke because it certainly appears that these actions of physical and emotional intimidation were considered justified. If I had become an Air Force officer, I would do my best to make sure I never had a Citadel cadet under my command.
Robert Davis, Citadel '84 Says:
2009-07-22 17:13:46
Laurie, if you had become an Air Force officer, it's quite possible you would have been under the command of a Citadel graduate. Despite not being a "real" military academy, The Citadel produces more Air Force officers than any school except the Air Force Academy, more Marine and Naval officers than any school except the Naval Academy and more Army officers than any school except West Point.
It is my understanding that it was actually the PUB who initiated physical contact with the cadets as they attempted to "scramble" through a line of them. It is also my understanding that earlier in the day, a number of PUB members attempted to enter one of the cadet barracks while shouting insults directed at The Citadel and the U.S. military.
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