There are, undoubtedly, more consequential racial issues in this country than the behavior of sports fans. Yet our community would be remiss to not recognize that what happens in the stands is a microcosm of our society.
Most recently, officials in the Washougal School District investigated an incident at a high school volleyball match. The Camas-Washougal Post-Record reported that, according to a source, “at least one student was allowed to attend the match while wearing ‘blackface,’ a term used to describe dark makeup worn by a person that mimics and mocks the appearance of a Black person.”
The origin of blackface is indisputably racist. Used in minstrel shows beginning in the 1830s by white actors wishing to mimic shuffling, shiftless Blacks — as AmericanHistoryUSA.com puts it, “the happy-go-lucky darky on the plantation” —- blackface was designed to reinforce racial stereotypes.
It is possible — indeed, likely — that a student attending a high school volleyball match is unaware of the bigoted history of blackface. But it is equally likely that too many people for too long have tried to excuse the use of blackface as a joke or a harmless gesture.
In 2016, responding to incidents at colleges, author Lawrence Ross wrote an article for TheRoot.com under the headline, “Blackface on College Campuses Isn’t About Freedom of Speech; It’s About White Supremacy.” Ross noted that defenders of the practice try to mitigate the issue by heralding freedom of speech “as though the Bill of Rights were a ‘Get Out of Racism’ card to be played.”
A single offensive act at a high school volleyball match does not presage the downfall of civilization. But abhorrent behavior appears to be increasingly infesting our fun and games.
A girls basketball coach from a Portland high school in December alleged that his players were subjected to racial taunts during a game at Camas. An independent investigation concluded that inappropriate comments likely were delivered, but “it is not possible to reach a definitive conclusion.”
In April, a varsity baseball game between Skyview and Camas was postponed after allegedly offensive comments by Camas athletes were made during a junior varsity game the previous day.
And in response to numerous complaints of racist behavior across the state, the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association, which oversees high school competitions, has created a new bias reporting system.
Bigotry is not limited to racial animus. During a football game against Brigham Young University last month, University of Oregon fans directed a vulgar anti-Mormon chant toward the BYU players and fans. The incident was no less offensive than racially motivated comments.
Collectively, such hatred during athletic contests demonstrates the gradual unraveling of our society. There is an underlying tension that was tapped into by Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign for president and his subsequent tenure; Trump did not create that tension, but he unearthed acolytes who have found power in his unfettered bigotry.
Bigoted, racist, offensive comments and actions often are protected under the guise of free speech — as they should be. That is a foundational element of the United States.
But free speech does not mean speech without consequences. It is up to those of us who embrace the meaning of our nation, the creed that all people are created equal, to oppose bigotry wherever we see it. Even in seemingly inconsequential settings such as a high school athletic contest.
