Marshall HS Coach, Parents Mobilize Against Allegations Of Racism

NORTHERN VIRGINIA — Players on the Wakefield High School varsity football team in Arlington were called racist language during a recent game against George C. Marshall High School in Fairfax County, according to Arlington Public Schools.

Arlington County school officials contend referees at the March 5 game at Marshall High School lost control of the game and did not take necessary action after Marshall players allegedly spat upon and used racial slurs against Wakefield players. The game ended with a fight breaking out between the teams.

“The blatant acts of racism and disrespect towards the Wakefield players are completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated,” Arlington Public Schools Superintendent Francisco Durán said Friday in a statement.

Jason Strickland, Marshall's head coach, said he and his staff did not hear any racial slurs or see any spitting by his players alleged by the Wakefield team.

"We saw it was very competitive between the two players throughout the game," Strickland, a math teacher at Marshall, said in a message sent to Marshall Statesmen parents. "But at no point did we see or hear any of the accusations that are being said about our players, coaches, or parents."

Three Wakefield students were given three-game suspensions by the Virginia High School League as a result of the fights at the end of the game, but the suspensions were reduced to one game. Wakefield lost the game to Marshall, 19-18.

Wakefield principal Christian Willmore said in a letter to the school community that he and Arlington Public Schools administrators “are outraged by the blatant acts of racism our players were subjected to during the game and that the officials did nothing to intervene despite our urging and even after our coaches signaled them to the behavior multiple times during the contest, allowing the situation to escalate.”

Last week, Willimore and Arron Gregory, chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for Arlington Public Schools, met with all the football players and coaches at Wakefield, from the 9th grade team through varsity.

"One student asked what they should do if this happened again. I responded to the student that, first, I was extremely proud of the restraint they had shown for 2 1/2 hours and that they handled it exactly as they should have: they reported it to the referees and then with their coaches," Willmore wrote in his letter. "In this case, the adults who were responsible failed them. I also informed them that in the future, all coaches have been instructed to leave the field/court immediately if our student-athletes are subject to racist, bigoted behaviors. Our student-athletes will not be put into a position like this again."

In an Instagram post this week, a player on Wakefield's team said he and his teammates "were called racial slurs, taunted, and even spit on by Marshall players" at the March 5 game.

"We also experienced unfair treatment by each of the refs and were harassed from the sidelines by coaches and Marshall parents," the player said. "We as a team complained to the refs all game about the way that we were being treated yet the flags were consistently thrown on us and even our coaches."

Fairfax County Public Schools said in a statement that it does not accept acts of intolerance. "We have expectations of behavior in our students and staff; allegations such as these are taken seriously," the school system said. "We are working with all families involved in this matter, school leadership, FCPS’ regional office, FCPS’ Chief Equity Officer, and the coaches from both teams to develop a plan for restorative justice.”

In a letter sent to the Marshall High School community on Wednesday, Marshall Principal Augie Frattali said the school has taken "this situation very seriously."

"We have done an intensive investigation into this situation and appropriate actions were taken against individuals by the Virginia High School League from both schools," Frattali said. "I also worked collaboratively with the Wakefield HS principal to ensure that there will be an opportunity for the students to join together to discuss their actions and develop a plan moving forward."

Strickland, Marshall's head coach, said he and his staff do not condone their players "committing unsportsmanlike conduct or acts of racism or bigotry from our teams/program in school, practices, games, or the community. We have multiple races and cultures within our program, and we never want to offend any individual or group in anyway."

"The incident that occurred on March 5th, was between two competitive players from Marshall and Wakefield, that unfortunately got out of hand that included both teams," Strickland said. "Our players, coaches, and parents refute these allegations wholeheartedly. I believe our players, coaches, and parents because I did not witness nor have I been shown actual proof of these accusations occurring."

Marshall Statesmen Parents, in a statement issued by the group, noted that the Wakefield players waited four days after receiving suspensions to allege that they were the victims of racial slurs.

“Coach Strickland reported nothing was said on the night of, or the immediate days after the game,” the parents group said in their statement.