Two high school football players from Kearns, Utah have been suspended from the team for posting and sharing a video showing a Pride flag burning and using homophobic language.
The player, from Kearns High School, posted a video on Snapchat of someone lighting a Pride flag on fire. In the video, someone can be heard saying “All gays die.”
The suspended students were the player who initially posted the video and another student who reposted the video. One of the students is a 15-year-old freshman.
Matt Rickards, head coach of the Kearns High School football team, told Fox13 that the incident “sickens” him.
“There’s no place for that in our program at all, and it won’t be tolerated,” Rickards said. “It’s potentially a hate crime, so it sickens me.”
He added, “We have one rule in our program, and that is not to embarrass yourself, your family or your team. That rule was broken. There’s got to be consequences for that.”
A spokesman for the Granite School District says they are investigating the incident and considering proper punishment for the students. Community service and school suspension are being considered.
“We want to make sure every student who walks through our doors feels safe and secure in the environment that they’re in,” District spokesman Ben Horsley told Fox13. “Whether it was done intentionally with a threat in mind or for humor’s sake, it’s inappropriate. And we’re going to address it in a very serious fashion.”
