Law students don’t have a reputation as the most sporty of people, but when you attend SEC powerhouse Alabama, tailgating is part of the culture. Sure, this week the pre-game jubilation pretty quickly turned to tears as they lost to Ole Miss, but the spirit was willing.
A tipster sent us an email from the dean, detailing some issues at Saturday’s tailgate, co-sponsored by the Student Bar Association. Let’s start with the more lighthearted of the problems:
The first was that the event was loud and disorderly, and required the intervention of security to maintain order.
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No matter how disorderly this group of law students got, I seriously doubt it was the worst thing that went on (off the football field) in Tuscaloosa Saturday.
The antics of this group of assumedly over-21-year-olds was a perfect opportunity for a lecture from Dean Brandon. While substance abuse is a serious issue in the legal profession, the tone of the missive is one more akin to speaking to an errant schoolchild than a grown-up struggling with addiction:
The second is that, as budding members of a noble profession, we must hold ourselves to high standards of private conduct and public decorum. Let me put a finer point on this. Abuse of alcohol and other substances – and the misbehavior that often results from excessive consumption of alcohol and other substances – are simply unacceptable.
The other issue identified at the tailgate was much more insidious:
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The second was that access to the event was restricted to persons who could demonstrate that they were students at the Law School. This in and of itself is not problematic. What is problematic is that there was a perception among some law students who wished to attend that they were being singled out for special inquiry because of their race.
Greeeeaaaaat, so now they’re racially profiling law school parties. Guess the bouncers from Gaslamp are working tailgates now.
The dean promises an investigation into the issue and espouses adherence to the principles of equality, but that isn’t enough for some at the law school. Our tipster takes issue with equating the problem with alcohol with the discriminatory treatment of members of the law school community.
I’m a student at Alabama Law School. I’m sending this email for 2 reasons: first, because the email treats law students like high school students on the issue of alcohol; second, because the email grossly fails to express the differences in priorities of the two events. One is a symptom of a systemic injustice that is especially relevant to Alabama Law School, the other is a sophomoric non-issue that doesn’t deserve occupy the same email. In short, the Dean equates the two issues in a completely ridiculous way, and showed his insensitivities towards blacks at our school in the process.
You can read the full email from the dean on the next page and decide for yourself.