BUZZ
ANALYSIS: Comprehensive investigation finds no support for racism
A Georgia school district is pushing back on wide-ranging complaints of racism, which included everything from allegations of slurs, spitting in food, and even parking decisions.
“Parents and students at Maynard Jackson High School in Atlanta alleged they were subjected to a variety of racist behavior during a game with Jefferson High School on Friday, Sept. 11,” Atlanta News First reported.
However, a detailed and joint investigation by officials from both schools concluded no racist activity occurred. The only verified complaint involves a non-affiliated adult and an alleged “altercation” with band members from Maynard Jackson High School.
The report went through a detailed list of complaints, concluding all but the “altercation” lacked support. The investigation included interviews, witness statements, and video footage.
Some of the claims include the presence of Confederate flags, but administrators from both schools said none were present. Celebrity attorney Ben Crump quickly amplified the claims.
Debunked claims include:
It has been alleged that racial slurs were directed toward some MJHS band members in the boys’ restroom located on the visitors’ side. Video cameras located outside the restrooms show footage of students entering and exiting the restroom. JHS administration reviewed this footage, interviewed and collected written statements from students who could be identified from Jefferson, and found no evidence to substantiate this claim. MJHS administration has provided no additional reports or other information confirming this incident.
It has been alleged that some MJHS band members heard several people direct racial slurs at them upon arriving at the stadium. JHS administration reviewed video footage and collected written statements from volunteers assisting with the visitor gate and traffic and found no evidence to substantiate this claim. MJHS administration has provided no additional evidence or reports.
Other claims bordered on petty.
For example, Maynard Jackson High School band members accused the school of being “racist and discriminatory” for requiring the band “to park across the street in a gravel parking lot.”
This is not a new policy and “[a]ll buses from opposing teams are allowed to unload and load on the street in front of the visitors’ entrance. During the game, buses are parked in a gravel lot across the street.”
Maynard fans also complained about not being allowed to park at the stadium. The school said space is limited and it runs a shuttle service from a nearby church.
“Home and visiting fans use this service when all other spaces are taken. This procedure is not new and does not vary from team to team,” the report stated.
Notably, the school vigorously defended its reputation against “misinformation and allegations rampantly circulating.”
“As a school district, we are deeply disheartened that our students, staff, families, volunteers, and community members have been subjected to vile and vicious accusations, listed here or otherwise, that are utterly unfounded,” the district stated. “None of these claims have been substantiated and do not reflect who we are as a school district and community.”
Jefferson City Schools is not the only district to fight back against racism allegations at sporting events.
Runners say they were called ‘monkeys’ – the school says they didn’t understand a comment
Several weeks ago, cross country runners from Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Illinois complained that they were called “monkeys” by an opposing team’s coach.
But the runners misheard a coach’s comment about a section of the course called “the jungle.” The fake allegations followed credible accusations against Lincoln Way East fans who appeared to mock Homewood-Flossmoor fans with monkey gestures during a football game in early September.
The participating students have subsequently been expelled.
But while Lincoln Way officials acted to punish those students, it is standing by its falsely accused cross country team. The second incident happened the day after the football incident.
ABC 7 News reported:
H-F athletes reported that some of the team and some of the coaches began cheering and making “noises that were racist.”
In a statement posted to social media, three cross country student-athletes from Homewood-Flossmoor described overhearing the coach at Lincoln-Way East referring to them as “monkeys.”
But that’s not what happened.
“Lincoln-Way’s administration learned that, prior to the meet on Saturday morning, Lincoln-Way East coaches merely recounted a well-known story about an area of the Lyons Township course referred to as ‘the jungle,’ district officials stated. “This area is labeled as such on publicly available maps of the course. According to the coaching staff and student-athletes, at the time of the meet Saturday morning, they were not even aware of the events that took place on Friday.”
A race map from 2011 does use the phrase “the jungle” to refer to an odd three-turn box on the course.
Homewood-Flossmoor High School says it still plans to “pursue legal action.”
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