WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- A central Indiana high school basketball coach said he’s frustrated by the political climate after two of his black athletes were the target of racial and verbal assaults on their way to school.
David Woods coaches the West Lafayette High School boys’ basketball team.
His players csaid that they were walking to high school when a vehicle pulled up beside them with three white men, who started yelling racial slurs at them.
“Three Caucasian males greeted them with the N-word. I think it scared them. Then they ran to one of the guy’s homes who lives close by,” said Woods.
Woods said he helped the boys file a police report, and he’s also written an op-ed piece for the local newspaper regarding the incident.
In that letter, Wood expressed his concern about what he feels is 'cultural regression spurred by political rhetoric' and Donald Trump’s election combined.
“I think that white bigots feel empowered by this election, and I think that there are a lot of things that have happened in our world to prove that,” said Woods.
But he said he knows that it isn’t just the election. And this type of behavior isn’t new to them or the community, but it does need to change.
“It’s fair to say tough, that this situation could have happened prior to Trump. I mean, obviously, it has. Certainly, this could have, certainly it has happened over and over many times in our country. Many, many, many, many times. You know I think a lot of, I’ve heard people say you know I thought we were about done with that,” said Woods.
Woods said he submitted that letter to the paper, to help raise awareness and spark dialogue among the open-minded in the community.
“Hey, do I have friends who voted for Donald Trump? Of course, I do, and I’m willing to talk about that and so hopefully we will have some real and conscientious and thoughtful dialogue,” said Woods.
