MERRILLVILLE, Ind. (AP) — The Catholic bishop in northern Indiana on Monday denounced students who waved a picture of GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump and shouted “build a wall” at opponents during a basketball game.
Diocese of Gary Bishop Donald J. Hying said in a statement that students from Andrean High Schoolin Merrillville shouted at students from Bishop Noll Institute, a heavily Hispanic school in nearby Hammond, on Friday evening. Both are Catholic high schools.
Bishop Noll students shouted back, “You’re a racist,” The (Munster) Times reported (http://bit.ly/21E3oQ0 ).
Trump has drawn criticism for saying that illegal immigration from Mexico brings rapists and drug dealers into the U.S. and for vowing to build a wall along the Mexican border.
Andrean school administrators confiscated items students had during the game. Hying said the incident is under investigation.
“Any actions or words that can be perceived as racist or derogatory to others are antithetical to the Christian faith and will not be tolerated in any of our institutions,” Hying said.
Officials from Bishop Noll, Andrean and the diocese met on Sunday to plan steps moving forward.
Andrean principal Rick Piwowarski said the school would “ensure that all of our students and staff understand their obligations of responsibility, acceptance and sportsmanship. We have, and continue to have, high expectations for all members of our school community.”
Bishop Noll principal Craig Stafford and school president Paul Mullaney said the incident could be “an unfortunate byproduct of irresponsible speech in today’s political arena.” Stafford and Mullaney said Bishop Noll is proud of its diversity.
“This is a teachable moment for everyone about responsible speech, social media and sportsmanship,” Stafford and Mullaney said in a message to the school community.
A similar event happened at a high school in the Des Moines, Iowa, area last week when students from a largely white school chanted Trump’s name after their basketball team lost to a more diverseschool.
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Information from: The Times, http://www.thetimesonline.com
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