Wakefield High Community Seeks Apology From Marshall High School

ARLINGTON, VA — Members of the Wakefield High School community are pushing for more accountability and action in the wake of a March 5 football game where players on George C. Marshall High School’s football team allegedly used racial slurs against Wakefield players.

In a letter sent Wednesday, alumni, parents and staff members at Wakefield — one of four public high schools in Arlington County — said they were “horrified” by the events that occurred at the March 5 game against Marshall, a high school in Fairfax County. The letter was addressed to Wakefield's principal, Arlington Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools and the Virginia High School League.

"During the game, Marshall players taunted and assaulted Wakefield players with racial slurs and some were even spit upon," the Wakefield community members said in their letter. "Wakefield coaches alerted the officials multiple times during the game, and actions were never taken to properly address the situation or stop the abuse from Marshall players."

The letter contrasts with a statement issued by a group called Concerned Parents of Marshall High School Varsity Football Players that noted Fairfax County Public Schools completed an investigation into the allegations against the Marshall players in late March. All allegations made by the Wakefield players were found to be unsubstantiated, according to the parents group.

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 the 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."

In their letter sent Wednesday, the Wakefield community members said they want a complete review of the entire game tape — not just the final incidents — "where it is clearly shown that officials were approached over 20 times by Wakefield coaches and athletes to put to a stop to the offending behavior."

According to the Wakefield community, no parent, coach, or player from the Wakefield side who was at the game has been asked to participate or share their perspective with Fairfax County officials who are conducting an investigation into the game.

The Wakefield community members also want a formal apology from Marshall High School and its football program and "an investigation be conducted of Marshall administration’s mishandling and allow minority students and voices to be heard and not silenced."

The letter was signed by nearly 200 Wakefield alumni, parents and staff members.

Last month, an online petition was created requesting an immediate apology from Marshall and its football program; an apology from the VHSL for not ensuring fair play; a reversal of the suspension of Wakefield players who were punished for responding to the alleged verbal and physical taunts; and mandatory diversity and inclusion training for local athletes, coaches and officials.

More than 14,600 people have signed the online petition.

At Marshall High School, a group of students is asking for greater transparency and accountability within the school's leadership. In a statement issued Monday, the Marshall students noted that "while Wakefield was organizing town halls and having discussions about the racism that occurred at the game, Marshall stayed quiet and, instead, questioned the timeline of events that occurred."

The statement said that Marshall "criticized and discredited Wakefield players for sharing their stories about two weeks after the game."

"Experiencing discrimination can be extremely traumatizing. Talking about those experiences (especially publicly) can take a lot of bravery and courage," the statement from the Marshall students said. "But that’s not what the criticism is about. If Wakefield players were to have publicly shared their experiences earlier, it would still be criticized but on the basis of it being 'too soon' with 'no process time.'"

Last week, Fairfax County Public Schools pledged to investigate allegations of the use of racially charged language at football games in the county.

Aside from the alleged incidents during the game between Marshall and Wakefield, students and parents of junior varsity football players at T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria said that a player for James W. Robinson Jr. Secondary School in Burke used the N-word and spat on a player for T.C. Williams near the end of a game on Monday.

Fairfax County Public Schools, in an April 7 letter, said it will be holding a "stand-down" meeting for all athletic teams and coaches to demonstrate appropriate conduct to play sports in the Fairfax County school system.

"This is not about one team versus another; it is about our responsibilities to one another as members of a community," the school system said.

RELATED:

• Fairfax Schools Launch Inquiry After New Racial Slur Complaint
• Marshall HS Coach, Parents Mobilize Against Allegations Of Racism