Although only one team member, still unidentified, made the remark, all of them are guilty if none stopped the slur or responded negatively to it.
All of this was predictable and preventable. So it is not surprising that members of the Haddonfield High School lacrosse team have, shall we say, picked up the stick and run with it.
There is a recent history in this nation of poor leadership that started with belittling and has progressed to hate. A governor receives national attention for being overly aggressive in dealing with people, castigating public employees as greedy and selfish, and berating constituents at town hall meetings.
Then a Republican presidential candidate arrives on the scene, insulting and demeaning his peers, equating immigrants with criminals, using Twitter to ridicule those with different views, and creating a new norm of lies and misdirection.
After his election, he really empowered racism and bigotry by defending neo-Nazis after they caused violence, including a death, at a rally in Charlottesville, Va. The majority of Republican elected officials either supported the president all the way or failed to condemn such comments. In today's climate, it is even acceptable to mock a terminally ill man who just happens to be a U.S. senator.
So, it is not surprising that some high school students are following the lead of adult leaders, making overt racism and sexism the new norm. Black guys in a coffee shop in Philadelphia, a black student sleeping in a common room in her Yale University dormitory; well, they should not be there, so the police are called to have them removed.
Too many of "them" on the football field at a Catholic high school; well, this makes some parents uncomfortable; so, replace the coach. Now, not far away at Haddonfield High School, an overwhelmingly white school and town, a lacrosse team member tells a female track athlete from Sterling High School, "N-word, get off my track." The hate filled, angry bubble we have allowed to grow is ready to explode at any time.
The lacrosse team chose their victim wisely, and yes, I said "their." Although only one team member, still unidentified, made the remark, all of the players who were present are guilty: If no team member stopped the slur or responded negatively to it, all should be penalized.
Racism, unlike the newest version of Microsoft Windows, will not "self-correct." If I'm in a stolen car joy riding with the fellows, and we get caught, I don't get to go home, even if I just went along for the ride. I get arrested.
This is why Haddonfield High administrators were justified in canceling the rest of the lacrosse season for the entire team. In a team environment the leaders, usually the upperclassmen, set the tone, while the others follow. In this case, the tone set by the team was, "Everybody keep their mouths shut, so we have a chance to get out of this unscathed."
The young lady from Sterling who was called out did everything right by informing her own coaches. Haddonfield lacrosse team members should be thankful she did not walk over and inform the boys on the Sterling track team, since there may have been a brawl.
In my high school years. calling a black girl the "N-word" not only guaranteed a fight, but a fight sanctioned by some black parents, including mine. Here is the speech I received every school year, familiar to many other black students:
"I am sending you to school to get an education, not to play around or waste time. I expect you to do all your teachers ask. Do not make me have to come to that school because you started trouble. Follow the rules, give your best effort, but if someone puts their hands on you or bothers you in any way, protect yourself."
Even though they were college-level educators, my parents said this because they knew that many teachers had neither the desire nor the means to protect minority students from hate. Even my grandmother, who never finished fifth grade, once told me if I ever let anyone refer to me as an "N-word" and I don't fight, I was going to have to fight her when I got home. She meant it.
In my first year in high school, several unknowingly brave young men directed that word to me. I fought them, resulting in my suspension from school. Things then went well until my second year, when another young man referred to me the same way. That resulted in my second suspension for fighting.
Perhaps word got around, because for the remainder of high school, my potential tormenters suddenly seemed to learn some discretion. I broke school rules, I fought, and I paid the price, because no adult at my school was there to fight for me.
In Haddonfield, Interim Superintendent David T. Lindenmuth was right to suspend the lacrosse team's remaining games. He did what was right for that young girl, and for the lacrosse team members.
Milton W. Hinton Jr. is director of equal opportunity for the Gloucester County government. He is past president of the Gloucester County Branch NAACP. His column states his personal views, not those of any organization or agency. Email: mwhjr678@gmail.com.
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