During unprecedented times of war between Israel and Hamas, an image of Adolf Hitler appeared on the jumbotron before Michigan State’s game against the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday. A staff member of Michigan State has been suspended as a result.
Fans in the stadium and people on social media alike were puzzled by the fact that Hitler’s image appeared on the jumbotron at Spartan Stadium, especially given the current circumstances in Israel.
Per CBS News, Michigan State was showing a trivia game from a YouTube channel known as The Quiz Channel, and a question asking where Hitler was born was featured in the quiz.
Whether Michigan State or the staff member decided to do this intentionally or not, it is something that should’ve been glanced over before displaying it on the jumbotron. The situation could’ve been avoided altogether if someone had taken the time to review the video.
Michigan State’s Athletic Director Alan Haller announced the suspension of the unnamed staff member as a result of the incident and the situation will continue to be investigated. Haller also went on to say that no one reviewed the entire quiz video before it was played.
“Antisemitism must be denounced. The image displayed before Saturday night’s game is not representative of who we are and the culture we embody. Nevertheless, we must own our failures and accept responsibility,” Haller mentioned in his statement.
Unfortunately, these things happen. While that doesn’t make it okay, we must learn from moments like this that there is a time and place for everything.
