The 2022-23 school year is starting off strong, and with that comes the start of football season. A recent home game on Aug. 19 took some unexpected turns when students noticed that the music had been turned off around halftime and would remain so throughout the rest of the game. This unanticipated change resulted in cheerleaders being unable to perform their planned dances and the student section being unable to sing along to songs.
When asked why the music was turned off, ASU Activities Director Sandy Mesa stated that “there are rules” established by the CIF league about “when we can play music and we cannot [...] We need to follow those rules because it can cause our team to be penalized during the game.” Many students believe the music was turned off because it was deemed inappropriate, which has spiked some controversy between the student body and the administration.
In a randomly conducted survey of 381 students, it has been found that 95% of students do not feel that songs with curse words are threatening or negatively influencing, and 92.9% of students enjoy listening to music at football games. 252 students surveyed stated they would want to hear rap music at games while 273 wanted to hear throwback songs followed by 204 students wanting to hear pop and 62 students wanting to hear other music, some requests being house music or country music. Only 5 students wished to watch football games with no music. It was also rumored that the music was turned off as it was a distraction for the football players. In response to this 32 of the 33 football players surveyed stated that they “appreciate a loud student section, specifically one participating in singing ‘hype’ songs and/or rap songs.”
Music was not the only issue that arose on this controversial night. A number of students reported having their signs taken from them. Mesa stated the signs were removed because they were not “pre-approved” by herself and other administrators. She explained that this approval is necessary to ensure “nothing on the signs will be offensive, culturally inappropriate [and/or] negative” and to avoid signs that may “obstruct the views of the spectators.” One of these signs that was removed read: “Be loud or go sit with your mom.” In an attempt to establish if these beliefs translated to the student body, the survey found that 95.3% of students did not view this phrase as offensive. 94.2% of students support the use of and believe in the effectiveness of signs.
When asked if there were any written rules regarding signs at football games, Mesa confirmed that there is not and that these regulations are simply addressed as they arise. These ‘rules’ and actions of removing signs contradict rights granted under the California Education Code 48907 that states that students possess the right to “press including, but not limited to, the use of bulletin boards, the distribution of printed materials or petitions [...] and the right of expression in official publications” unless the speech is “obscene, libelous, or slanderous.” The phrase “Be loud or go sit with your mom” contains no obscenity nor libel nor slander. Under the code, students do not need pre-approval by ASU to distribute printed materials, including signs for football games, given that the materials follow the regulations. In the CUSD Freedom of Speech Code it is stated that “The Governing Board respects students’ rights to express ideas and opinions, take stands, and support causes, whether controversial or not, through their speech, writings, printed materials and/or the wearing of buttons, badges and other insignia.” While the phrase “Be loud or go sit with your mom” could be offensive to some, controversial press is respected under CUSD code.
It seems that this increase in regulation is not affecting Dana students alone. In the past, other schools have faced controversy regarding the contents of signs at football games. Aliso Niguel High School faced public backlash at a football game in 2018 against Santa Ana, a school with a predominantly hispanic student population. Troubles arose when the administration claimed that students posted signs containing phrases that were racially offensive. Sensitivity to such things in recent years has made administration weary of student verbal participation in games.
In response to the controversy, Mesa has suggested the distribution of pre-approved signs at football games. Still, many emphasize that this solution does not address students’ rights under California Education Code 48907. The debate still stands over whether or not the censorship of student-made signs violates student rights to the “distribution of printed materials” (CA Education Code 48907).
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
