Where were adults when students made racist taunts at Topeka High School hoops game?

Should fans be barred from basketball games at Valley Center High School in Kansas after allegations of racist chants directed at Black basketball players from Topeka High? That’s for school administrators to decide. But video footage showing a Black baby doll mockingly being held by a fan sitting in the Valley Center student section is disheartening. Who thought it was a good idea to taunt visiting African American basketball players with such a prop?

We get it: Kids will be kids. But, where were the grown-ups? From our perspective, every single adult inside Valley Center’s gym this past weekend failed to protect Topeka High students from emotional and mental abuse. If ever there was a time to stand up and put a stop to such nonsense, it was while these taunts were happening.

Valley Center school administrators, coaches, teachers, on-site security and game officials all shoulder responsibility for allowing Valley Center students to use inappropriate language and racist symbols to harass their opponents.

Since the incident, apologies and statements have been issued, petitions have been started, investigations begun, and communities in Topeka and Valley Center are having difficult conversations on race — or at least that is our hope. On Wednesday, because of unspecified online threats, Valley Center Unified School District canceled classes and closed buildings, according to district officials.

Students who made inappropriate comments were removed from the game, Valley Center administrators said. But adults in attendance should be embarrassed for allowing children on school grounds to violate the rules of sportsmanship. Yelling the obscene and sexist “He’s a (vulgar word for vagina)!” at an opposing basketball player shouldn’t be permitted at any level of basketball, let alone inside a high school gymnasium.

We learn from experience — both good and bad. What did we teach these students?

As of Tuesday, Valley Center officials that they have yet to determine if a student used racist language, they wrote in a statement. But the opposing coach claims otherwise. The n-word was used and visiting players and spectators from Topeka were threatened with lynching, according to Topeka High School head boys basketball coach Geo Lyons.

“Employees from Valley Center High School failed to protect Topeka High from racial slurs, threats and disgusting taunts,” Lyons wrote in a change.org petition asking spectators to be removed from future Valley Center games.

Under Kansas State High School Activities Association bylaws, game officials have discretion to remove unruly fans from high school athletic events. Did they do enough to address the situation with gym supervisors? Coach Lyons says no.

“The game officials did not notice anything out of the ordinary other than the chant during the free throw that is on social media now,” Jeremy Holaday, KSHSSA assistant executive director, told us. “When that took place, the officials made sure the school administrators were aware and addressed the issue. The game officials believed the school administration did address the issue appropriately and timely.”

Valley Center and Topeka Public Schools officials are working together to determine whether racist comments were made and by whom, according to Valley Center administrators. In its letter to families of students, Valley Center promised “follow-up consequences for those students involved.”

Topeka schools Superintendent Tiffany Anderson condemned the unruly behavior Topeka students faced in the letter, but appreciated the apology from Valley Center officials.

“We hope their district takes the appropriate steps to address what occurred with those involved,” Anderson wrote.

This incident is a stark reminder that racism still exists in our country — and that it can happen anywhere at any time. And that fact is what makes the argument against teaching the history of slavery and discrimination in this country so insidious. Legislators all over the nation, including Kansas, are preventing students from learning about the impact of racism and racist decision-making over time. Incidents such as the alleged abhorrent incident in Valley Center do not happen in a vacuum. These are learned behaviors and need to be confronted head on.

It is our hope that students from both communities use what occurred inside Valley Center’s gym as a catalyst for growth.