Allegations of Racial Slurs During High School Football Game

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by Lamar Tyler | on September 23rd, 2008 | 10 comments

Last Friday during a high school football game between Dunbar (DC) and Fort Hill (Cumberland, MD), Dunbar’s head coach lead his team off of the field in the third quarter because of claims that he made later in regards to unfair officiating and racial slurs being used by the opposing team Fort Hill which is in a predominately white community.

Fort Hill denies this was the case but the thing that makes you raise an eyebrow is what happened there last year. Check this out from the Washington Post:

Last spring, tensions rose at Fort Hill, a high school in Cumberland, Md., after two students were suspended following an argument that allegedly included racist epithets. Subsequently, some students began displaying the Confederate flag on their clothes and trucks, prompting Fort Hill Principal Steve Lewis to ban the flag’s display at school.

An investigation of the flag display is ongoing, according to a spokesman from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division who declined further comment.

Fort Hill Coach Todd Appel said the flag issue was in the back of his mind when Jefferies made his allegations. “We had an incident here last year,” Appel said Saturday, “and it’s not something we want to be associated with.”

Dunbar’s coach said he felt that a fight was approaching so he got his team up out of there. Seems to me like if this were the situation he made the right move but as I surfed around the web it seems like talk on different sites centered around whether the ref’s calls were legit instead of whether or not Ft. Hill was dropping N bombs. Here’s video of Dunbar leaving the field and a player recounting the story:

BMWK, what do you think about this story? Did the coach make the right move if this was the case? Would you have kept the team in the game and told them to beat the other teams butts? Does Fort Hill’s previous history play a part in this story? Let us know.

About the author

Lamar and Ronnie Tyler are the creators of the award-winning blog BlackandMarriedWithKids.com . They also are behind the Amazon.com bestselling DVDs Happily Ever After: A Positive Image of Black Marriage, You Saved Me and Men Ain’t Boys that explores manhood in the African American community. The Tylers are also the proud parents of four children.

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Comments (10)

Avg Joe Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

Now, who really thinks the Dunbar folks are making this up? I'd be more surprised to find out Fort Hill didn't say that stuff than I would be to hear that they did.
Jessica Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

I truely believe that Dunbar is making this up! Come on FH has black players and where were their players when this happened. I'm sure they would have been made too. I think they thought they were being treated unfair with too many penalties so they quit. End of story!
Anna Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

Whether it was said or not. A Confederate Flag. I saw someone on my home from work with Confederate License Plates. My State is very picky when it comes to "vanity plates" I am sure this guy was just passing through. In my best Rodney King, "Can't we all just get along". This is crazy.
TheDad Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

@ Jessica - FH has black student and that didn't stop them from trying to represent with the confederate flag
TheDad Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

Plus regardless of whether they liked the refs calls or not they were winning so thats something else to consider. Would they really jeopardize giving up a game if it didn't happen. At Dunbar football is no joke so it's not like they don't care either way whether they win or lose. They do care believe me.
Jessica Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

That is true. I'm not racist. I'm just saying I went to FH and graduated two years ago and nothing like that happened at all when I was a student. But if the referees did not hear anything then nothing was said. It is all hear say. And the entire "confederate flag" thing that was last year. You can not use that to judge the students this year. That's like saying because those boys are from DC they are gangsters because of the way they dress. But then again you have to think we are from cities where different races are everywhere. These boys are from a small town who don't really have many African American people. But seriously the referee's even said Dunbar's coach was yelling and cussing at him. I don't think anything is going to come up in the investigation and it is nothing but hear say. And I do NOT believe some kid from Dunbar started to cry. Regardless kids will be kids and ref's did say they heard Dunbar making comments to FH's boys!
TheDad Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

@ Jessica- By no way or means do I think Dunbar wasn't guilty of cussing or whatever. I'm sure these city dudes weren't just down for being called the N word and going along with it like it was all good. I don't by that either for a second.
Jessica Wednesday - 24 / 09 / 2008 Reply

I just think regardless boys will be boys. Both teams probably showed unsportsman like conduct by the end of the game. Either way one wrong doesn't make a right. No matter what decision the state makes over the game, it is unfair and that goes for either team.
Quake Friday - 03 / 10 / 2008 Reply

If they ban the confederate flag I think it is a step in the wrong direction. I for one would like to see Rap music banned, along with Spike Lee and Michael Moore movies, shirts and posters, pants worn around the thighs rather than the waist, hoodies that zip up over the face, obscene language in public, tolerance of class disturbances and many other things prevalent in today's high schools, but somehow I don't think any of these things could be even discussed without the cry of "that violates somebody's civil rights". So why is the confederate flag any different? I think it is a travesty that the school that made the accusations that are now appearing to be more related to the officiating than the the racial slurs get to continue it's schedule but the accused school has to cancel their games just because they were accused. Anyone remember the Duke rape case that turned out to be completely false? Here we go again.
Jessica Saturday - 04 / 10 / 2008 Reply

I agree with you Quake!!!!! What ever happened to innocent until proven guilty! I'm in school for Criminal Justice and trust me I would have had some law suits against someone for this! Boys will be boys and it's rediculus that FH's boys have to suffer because someone accused them of something that can NOT be proved!