What happened:
During the halftime show of the Stanford-Brigham Young University football game on November 26, the Leland Stanford Junior Marching Band (LSJUMB) used highly sacred phrases reserved solely for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints temple ceremonies in a way that mocked the religion. It is not missed that this was done in a highly public manner.
Several PIH reports were filed by students, as well as, non-affiliates.
Religious bias even when the intent is satire can be harmful and in these cases does not align with the university’s values and is not tolerated.
What is being done:
Updated as November 29, 2022
Student Affairs staff have reached out to individual students who expressed being harmed and impacted.
Student Affairs staff and the Band Director have reached out to and plan to meet with Latter Day-saint Student Association student leaders this week.
LSJUMB will make several changes to the review of field show scripts, moving forward. Changes under discussion include having someone from the Office of Inclusion, Community and Integrative Learning serve on the script review committee and reaching out to identity-based student groups for feedback on scripts.
Stanford Department of Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation issued a statement on Monday, November 28 addressing the incident:
“The Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band (LSJUMB) has a long history of lighthearted and satirical halftime performances. Unfortunately, some of the language that was used in Saturday’s halftime show did not reflect Stanford University’s values of religious freedom and diversity, inclusion and belonging. The LSJUMB deeply regrets that this performance caused offense to spectators, and the halftime performance review and approval process is being adjusted to ensure that issues like this do not occur again.”
What to do:
- Students needing assistance are invited to reach out to these mental health resources and faculty/staff can reach out to the Faculty Staff Help Center.
- Individual students may also reach out to the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life staff for support.
- If you experience bias or discrimination, please file a Protected Identity Harm report.