A game of soccer between two Wisconsin high school teams ended in tears as supporters from one team started hurling racist insults at the other.
A group of frighteningly young Trump supporters from the Elkhorn High School student section began chanting racist remarks, both at the Beloit Memorial team and other Beloit students during Thursday’s game. Chants included “Donald Trump, build that wall.”
Players from the Beloit team were upset and, as Beloit Memorial girls soccer Coach Brian Denu shared,
“[Some students] came off the field and weren’t able to finish the game because they were too upset and distraught over what happened to them. One of the girls was cradled in the arms of one of our assistant coaches for a good 15 to 20 minutes… I could just see the hurt and pain on their face and know that this was obviously something that they hadn’t seen before. You know, it was from a small pocket of the Elkhorn fans, but those words are things that you can’t take back.”
A new day has come!! Racism has no place in our society today, especially in HS athletics!! #together #itis2016people #bebetterthanthat
— Brian Denu (@BeloitSoccer) April 8, 2016
Elkhorn district administrator Jason Tadlock shared initial findings regarding the incident:
“We have confirmed that some students near the sidelines yelled inappropriate/offensive comments toward some of the players.”
Elkhorn, Wisconsin, lies southwest of Milwaukee. It’s important to note that the Elkhorn high school students are about 85% white and live in a fairly racially one-toned area. According to the Elkhorn city website, their motto is “Living in Harmony” which “reflects its traditional ‘hometown’ values.” Unfortunately, that motto seems to be the least of the citizens’ cares right now.
Elkhorn’s students aren’t alone in their viewpoints – or in utilizing Trump’s name and beliefs as a method to deliver racism at a high school game. At the end of February, a similar situation occurred during a basketball game in Iowa. A similar incident happened just days before in Indiana.
Children learn racism from others, leaving one to wonder how many of these students’ parents share these views.
Featured image via Marc Nozell, available under Creative Commons License 2.0.
