An elite San Francisco high school’s championship varsity baseball team is facing three game losses and the firing of coaching staff after racial taunts were allegedly lobbed at a game last spring.
Lowell High School’s team, which won the city title in May, will have to forfeit three games against rival teams and get an entirely new coaching staff, school officials announced Monday after an investigation into the alleged incident.
“We want to emphasize that there is no place for racism, discrimination, or racialized harm in the Lowell community or anywhere in SFUSD,” district officials said in a statement seen by the San Francisco Chronicle.
School officials have been tight-lipped in relaying what happened, but the penalties are reportedly tied to a mid-May game against Lincoln High School, near the end of the season.
According to social media users who claimed they were at the game, Lowell varsity players in the bleachers allegedly shouted racist noises and comments at black and Latino players in the field.
Some were allegedly making monkey noises at a black player, according to accounts posted online. Others allegedly shouted “Build a wall!” at a Latino player, referencing stereotypes around illegal immigrants.
In video of the game posted to YouTube, a person can be heard shouting “build a wall” in the background of the eighth inning, for instance.
The California Interscholastic Federation’s San Francisco section also investigated the incident and handed out the three forfeits, in addition to a mandated sportsmanship course.
The school district did not share whether there were punishments for any of the players who allegedly shouted the taunts, citing student privacy laws. But it did promise “accountability” for the incident.
Prior to the new coaching staff announcement, the team’s three coaches were each suspended following the incident. Varsity head coach Michael Sera, who is also a physical education instructor, was also put on leave from his teaching role.
Sera, who was in his first year as head coach, declined comment to multiple outlets.
Lowell plans to hire a interim coach and a search for a new head coach by next season.
The San Francisco school district is insisting that any harms are being accounted for and that students are learning from their mistakes.
“Immediately after the initial report of the incident, Lowell administration were in direct communication with the impacted students, their family, and the Lincoln team to ensure that they worked to repair any harm done,” district officials said in the statement.
“Lowell Varsity players engaged in relearning of the (official) code of conduct, met and discussed the importance of being upstanders when bullying and harassment is witnessed, and individual players took accountability for their individual actions.”
