'F*** the Mormons!' Utah governor calls Oregon students' chant during BYU football game 'religious bigotry'; left-wing Oregon governor says 'we must do better'



Utah Gov. Spencer Cox blasted an "f*** the Mormons!" chant from University of Oregon students caught on video during a home football game Saturday against Brigham Young University in Eugene, Oregon.

"Religious bigotry alive and celebrated in Oregon," Cox, a Republican, wrote on a Twitter post that included video of the chant. Content warning: Profanity:

\u201cReligious bigotry alive and celebrated in Oregon.\u201d
— Spencer Cox (@Spencer Cox) 1663464796

BYU is private university in Utah sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are commonly known as Mormons, CBS News noted in its report on the incident.

One apology, one 'we must do better' declaration

The University of Oregon apologized for the incident Sunday.

"The University of Oregon sincerely apologizes for an offensive and disgraceful chant coming from the student section during yesterday’s game against Brigham Young University," the school said on a Twitter post. "These types of actions go against everything the university stands for, and it goes against the spirit of competition. We can and will do better as a campus community that has no place for hate, bias or bigotry."

Oregon's far-left Gov. Kate Brown posted a retweet of the school's apology and added a "we must do better" declaration: "In Oregon, we strive to be a welcoming, inclusive state to all, regardless of race, religion, gender, or background. Our state and nation have an ugly history of discrimination and bigotry. The chant at yesterday's Oregon-BYU game was unacceptable. We must do better."

Oregon beat BYU 41-20, CBS News noted.

Debunked Duke volleyball racism claim, anyone?

It's more than reasonable — unless you're avoiding the subject — to view the anti-LDS chant during the BYU football game in concert with a Duke volleyball player's now-debunked racism accusation against BYU last month.

BYU officials banned a fan accused of yelling racial slurs at Rachel Richardson, a Duke volleyball player, during an Aug. 26 match. Richardson's godmother claimed on social media that Richardson was called the N-word "every time she served" and was "threatened by a white male that told her to watch her back going to the team bus." Richardson made the same allegations.

It ignited a media firestorm, with talking heads from coast to coast characterizing the accusations as factual before actual facts came in. Here's one example, with CNN's Brianna Keilar telling Richardson's father she's "sorry for what your daughter had to endure" and him admitting he didn't attend the game at BYU:

Father of Duke volleyball player discusses racist comments directed at his daughter youtu.be

CNN was singing a different tune after BYU announced Sept. 9 that after an extensive investigation, it found no evidence to corroborate accusations than a fan racially harassed a Duke University volleyball player — and the school reversed the ban on the fan:

\u201cBYU reverses ban on fan after finding no evidence of slur against a Duke volleyball player. @JohnAvlon has today\u2019s Upon Further Review:\u201d
— New Day (@New Day) 1662988491

It's also reasonable to wonder if the racism accusation against BYU — despite it being disproven — played any part in the Oregon students chanting "f*** the Mormons" at Saturday's football game.

Here's the perspective of one Twitter user who apparently only heard about accusations against BYU and missed the debunking part: "Was this a reaction to the person that yelled racial slurs at the ladies of color who were in a volleyball match against BYU? Did @SpencerJCox ever condemn the person and this ugly episode at the mormon-owned BYU?"

And another one: "I'm old enough to remember BYU fans at a volleyball match yelling bigoted racial chants at a Black volleyball player. Bigotry alive and celebrated by BYU fans. Don't act like you are better."

But one Twitter user noticed the correlation: "This is a direct result of the hate commentary leveled against BYU following the Duke 'thing.; All commentators that condemned BYU, invoking the religion, are responsible and must face consequences. They are guilty of fanning and inciting violence."

Racism at BYU Debunked

Racism at BYU Debunked

BYU banned fan for allegedly using N-word against black athlete. But police now say that he did not do it.



The story of a Brigham Young University fan hurling racial slurs at a Duke University volleyball player does not appear to be what it seemed.

What is the background?

BYU athletic officials banned a fan on Saturday for allegedly using a racial epithet against a Duke player at a game last Friday night.

The incident quickly gained national attention when Lesa Pamplin, who identified herself as the godmother of Duke volleyball player Rachel Richardson, claimed on social media that Richardson was called an N-word "every time she served" and was "threatened by a white male that told her to watch her back going to the team bus."

Richardson later claimed in a statement that "my fellow African American teammates and I were targeted and racially heckled throughout the entirety of the match. The slurs and comments grew into threats which caused us to feel unsafe."

Richardson alleged BYU officials were notified of the alleged slurs and threats but "failed to take the necessary steps to stop the unacceptable behavior and create a safe environment." Richardson reiterated many of these comments in an ESPN interview on Tuesday.

What is happening now?

BYU police, who investigated the incident, determined that the fan who was banned for yelling the racial slurs was not, in fact, the person who shouted them, the Salt Lake Tribune reported — and further stated that they had yet to find any evidence that anyone shouted them at all.

"When we watched the video, we did not observe that behavior from him," BYU Police Lt. George Besendorfer told the newspaper.

BYU associate athletic director Jon McBride confirmed that university officials came to the same conclusion. He said:

Various BYU Athletics employees have been reviewing video from BYUtv and other cameras in the facility that the volleyball team has access to for film review. This has been ongoing since right after the match on Friday night. The person who was banned was the person identified by Duke as using racial slurs. However, we have been unable to find any evidence of that person using slurs in the match.

In fact, no evidence has surfaced proving anyone shouted racial slurs. Instead, students who attended the game attest they never heard any slurs.

The Cougar Chronicle, a BYU student-run newspaper, cited multiple students on the record who were in the student section at the game and never heard any slurs.

Indeed, Besendorfer has confirmed that no student who sat in the section where the slurs allegedly came from — nor anyone who attended the volleyball match, for that matter — has come forward to report the person who hurled epithets.

Even more importantly, "[Besendorfer] also said no one has come forward to say they heard the slur being shouted during the match," the Tribune reported.

A police report, which the Tribune obtained, shows that BYU officials placed a police officer near the Duke bench after they were alerted to the racial slurs. But no one in that section identified the person making the slurs, nor did the officer hear any slurs.

BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe has also said that four ushers and an officer were sent into the stands to identify the person making the slurs. But no one was found.

It turns out the person whom BYU banned was identified by Duke personnel. Police spoke with him, but he denied making slurs. He confirmed he did approach Richardson after the game, mistaking her for someone he believed was his friend. And despite the lack of evidence against him, the police report said BYU officials wanted to ban him anyway.

After police review of the video evidence failed to confirm the person BYU officials banned was the one who made the slurs, Besendorfer said the investigation was taken over by BYU officials.

Duke vs BYU Aug. 26, 2022 NCAA www.youtube.com

Son grows out hair for over two years to create wig for his mom who lost her hair after radiation treatment: 'She gave me the hair in the first place'



An Arizona mother of six, who lost her hair permanently after heavy doses of radiation treatment, has a full head of hair again after her son grew out his hair for more than two years so that experts could fashion it into a wig for her.

Melanie Shaha was first diagnosed with a tumor in her pituitary gland back in 2003. At the time, the tumor was the size of a plum. Though benign, doctors removed the tumor because it was growing rapidly and could affect other bodily processes, like hormone regulation and fertility.

When the tumor returned in 2006, doctors removed it again. By the time it returned a third time in 2017, Melanie and her medical teams elected to go a different route and shrink the tumor through radiation. Though her doctor initially told Melanie that the treatment wouldn't cause her to lose her hair, it fell out anyway.

"About three months after radiation, all my hair started to fall out, which I didn't know would happen," she said. "And the doctor said it won't come back."

"Not having hair, you stick out like a sore thumb and well-meaning people can say things that break your heart," she added. "I don't mind being sick, but I mind looking sick. I'd rather blend in and not stand out at the store."

And that's when her son Matt stepped in. During a family lunch one day in 2018, Matt, now 27, made an off-hand joke. "Why don't I grow out my hair to make a wig for you?" Matt asked his mom rhetorically.

Though said in jest, the idea stuck, and soon Matt began planning to grow out his hair to gift to his mom. He couldn't begin the process immediately because he was still attending Brigham Young University, a school with a strict grooming code for men and women. However, the shutdown of 2020 meant that Matt would attend classes remotely, and he could begin letting his hair grow long.

In March 2022, more than two years after he began growing it out, Matt's hair was finally 12 inches long, the minimum length for wig. The family then contacted Compassionate Care in California, a business which creates wigs using donated hair. The company hand-delivered Melanie the wig in June.

After a team of stylists adjusted the hair to suit her, both Melanie and Matt say they couldn't be happier with the results.



"The color is spectacular and we had it cut and styled with a hairdresser," Melanie said. "Matt said it looks great on me."

"It's a no-brainer. She gave me the hair in the first place," Matt added.

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