Via Subway Domer comes a staggering roster of stories of drinkers, non-drinkers, and non-drinking disabled veterans alike being rounded up by the fake cops Notre Dame Security Police before, during, and after Fighting Irish football games. A typical tale:
I am a 52 year old subway alumni that took my 6 year old daughter to her first ND game and on to Chicago for the sights. After buying a Coke I entered the mens’ room. I saw a cop but paid no attention. After I walked out to my waiting daughter the cop grabbed me from behind scaring us both. He demanded my Coke in order to inspect it for alcohol. As he smelled the drink my daughter was panic stricken that “Daddy was in trouble”. I had not had a drink in 48 hours but still felt the need to defend myself from this baffoon. It was a humiliating experience in front of my child.
This is actually something that Notre Dame students, alumni, subway alumni, and other visitors have long been complaining about, and earlier this year an article in the student newspaper touting the number of arrests during the season’s first home game prompted a Dillon Hall sophomore to write in with an open letter to the NDSP assistant director that included these brilliant paragraphs:
It’s comforting to know that we should both fear local police on game day mornings (when we need them the least), and fear the absence of local police on game day nights (when we need them the most). Obviously we understand NDSP’s jurisdiction ends at Main Gate, but since you so proudly catalogue your successes (34 arrests!) this weekend “working with Indiana State Excise Police, St. Joseph County Police, and South Bend Police” what’s to stop you from collaborating again to better protect us off campus?
[...]
Underage drinking is illegal, but increasing off campus violence against this student body should be of far greater concern. Keep us safe from off campus violence, and until then, stop talking in the Observer. You don’t deserve the face time.
Heh. Seriously, though, this is genuinely worrisome stuff, and it’s part and parcel of the horribly stupid view of law enforcement that’s been digging its feet in nationwide. Nathan Origer’s gripping account of his NDSP-sponsored night in the St. Joseph County jail is here, and here is a sample of the sort of thing that concerned students, parents, and alumni can do to combat this nonsense, as well as the rest of the puritanical idiocy that is sucking the life out from under the Golden Dome. I for one will not rest until achievements like this one (search for “keg smuggle”) become realistic once again.
Filed under: civil liberties, sports
[...] politics Bob Barr will be speaking at Notre Dame tomorrow. Somebody go and ask him about gameday nannies and the Colfax 37. No Comments so far Leave a comment RSS feed for comments on this post. [...]
[...] Update: So, apparently things have taken a rather troubling turn at ND, with NDSP — and the ever-fantastic SBPD — dedicating too much time to pretty [...]