UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (WLVT) - A letter sent to a Penn State football player went viral, after a teammate posted it online, asking “Tell me how this isn’t racist.”
The letter was sent to Safety Jonathan Sutherland, and it read, in part: “Don’t you have parents or girlfriend who’ve told you those shoulder length dreadlocks look disgusting and are certainly not attractive.”
According to The Tribune-Democrat, a newspaper in Johnstown, the person who wrote the letter is 1966 Penn State graduate, David Peterson.
As of early Tuesday afternoon, the tweet had 49,000 likes and 14,000 retweets. Head coach of the Nittany Lions football team, James Franklin, addressed the letter in his weekly press conference. “Jonathan Sutherland is one of the most respected players in our program,” said Franklin. “He’s the ultimate example of what our program is all about. He’s a captain. He’s a dean’s list honor student. He’s confident. He’s articulate. He’s intelligent. He’s thoughtful. He’s caring and he’s committed. He’s got two of the most supportive parents, and I would be so blessed if my daughters would marry someone with his character and integrity one day.”
In an interview with The Tribune-Democrat, Peterson said it was not his intent to make a racial or cultural statement. He was quoted by the newspaper as saying, “I would just like to see the coaches get the guys cleaned up and not looking like Florida State and Miami guys.”
Penn State tweeted a response saying they strongly condemn the message of intolerance, and “the content of the letter does not align with our values.”