Racism reared its ugly head in high school again, this time at a private high school in New York.
16-year-old Tony Humphrey is a star baseball player for Iona Prep high school in New Rochelle, NY.
He committed to play at Boston College but wanted to get a little faster, so he took up track.
Earlier this week an assistant athletic director questioned Humphrey about his participation in the sport.
“It never hurts to gain speed,” replied Humphrey.
The coach, according to the report by WPIX, implied that he was already fast enough, and then he took it there.
Humphrey said the assistant AD told the teen that he “gained that speed by running from the police.”
After the incident, Humphrey spoke with his mother and they decided he would transfer to a public school closer to their home in Cortlandt, NY.
“I decided to leave, because of my current situation, as I’m already committed. I’m already going to [college],” said Humphrey to WPIX. “I don’t feel like I have to stay at a program where they’re going to look at me different, or feel uncomfortable at a place I have to go to Monday through Friday.”
Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first time racism was directed towards Humphrey at Iona Prep.
“MY freshman year, I took it up with the deans, I took it up with the higher ups, and nothing happened to the other student,” said Humphrey.
Fortunately, Tony’s mother wasn’t the only one to have his back.
Some of the students at the school staged a walkout in support of their fellow classmate. In response, Iona Prep issued a letter to parents condemning racism and noted that the assistant athletic director who made the offensive remark had resigned.
“Such comments go against the very mission of the school to develop moral and ethical leaders. It is behavior that Iona Preparatory does not condone for its students and will not accept from its faculty and staff.”
But that’s too late for Tony Humphrey and now he’s moving on.
