Article pointing finger at Racist Referees

[All_Heart]

IHSAA should require diverse crews officiating in basketball

By Jonathan Ray
For The News-Sentinel
Article published Mar 24, 2009

Every Indiana high school varsity basketball player dreams about winning a state title. This is Indiana, and everyone loves the round ball.

Americans love competition. It permeates everything we do. We love to participate in sports or be a spectator observing the competition.

Competition is the act or state of trying hard to win or gain something wanted by others. The implication is that not everyone who wants victory can have it, and there are rules to define how fair competition must proceed for the prize to be won.

The rules are enforced by officials who maintain order and structure on the floor. Indiana officials lack diversity, and sometimes that lack of diversity leads to an unfair competitive edge for one team.

In light of fair competitions, the officials should be as diverse as the students who are playing on the floor. Year after year, children's dreams are deferred by questionable calls that appear to be biased. In the spirit of Hoosier Hysteria and fair competition, Blake Ress (commissioner of the Indiana High School Athletic Association), it's time to require diverse officiating crews.

Officials shouldn't have a rooting interest. There are many examples of why diversity matters. Here is an example of one instance of a dream deferred.

The officiating crew of Tim Dailey, Dennis Jackson and Greg Bowman had a big impact on the 2009 Wayne Sectional final between Peru and Wayne high schools. Just maybe a lack of diversity caused them to make a no-call with 50 seconds left when a Wayne athlete was fouled and pushed out of bounds.

With three men, you would think the right call could be made. One play earlier, an official overruled an out-of-bounds play where the near official gave Wayne the ball. That play was reversed and the ball given to Peru.

Then two major plays occurred that determined the 2009 sectional champ. A 6-7, 240-pound Wayne athlete had a breakaway dunk with 10 seconds left on the clock. A Peru player ran and pushed him in the back. An intentional foul, two shots and the ball would have been the right call. The official called a common foul, a one-and-one situation. The official said he didn't want to impact the game.

But with 0.5 seconds left and Wayne leading 43-42, an official called a questionable foul on Wayne, claiming it was an easy call. That call changed the game and crowned Peru the champion. Congratulations to Peru, and good luck.

A dream was deferred for some. Diversifying officiating crews might make every call an easy call, no matter whom it affects.

---

Jonathan C. Ray is president and CEO of the Fort Wayne Urban League.

This was a response written to Jonathan Ray: Those Darn Racist Basketball Referees | Fort Wayne Politics

Fort Wayne's Team Website

Video Highlights of the game - Funny thing, the only foul called in the video looks like there should have been a Player Control foul on Blue #35 for hooking the player and then another for displacing #20 White. Instead the foul is called against white for a potential 3 point play. Looks like those mean old white officials sure had it in for the Wayne Generals.

Fort Wayne's record 13-9
Peru's record 19-4

This of course doesn't mean anything except that Fort Wanye (according to Jonathan) must have had 9 games with officiating crews that are not "diverse".

The newspaper allowed the officials names to be printed in an article where the author is accusing them of racism and cheating with absolutely NO EVIDENCE. If anyone knows these officials in Indiana they should be made aware of what they are being accused of in the article.

Here is a quote from the newspaper's website posted right above the comments section:

The News-Sentinel reserves the right to remove any content appearing on its Web site. Our policy will be to remove postings that constitute profanity, obscenity, libel, spam, invasion of privacy, impersonation of another, or attacks on racial, ethnic or other groups.

I think they need to worry more about what THEY are posting on THEIR website!

[BktBallRef]

If three black officials are on the floor and make the same calls/no calls, we never hear a word from this guy. But because the offiicals are white, then they obviously didn't make the call because they are racist.

Why is it that those who are in a position such at this gentleman appear to be the most racist?

Hopefully, they'll contact an attorney and discuss the potentially libelous remarks.

[mutantducky]

wow. shockingly bad editorial.

"A dream was deferred for some. Diversifying officiating crews might make every call an easy call, no matter whom it affects. "


I threw up a little after reading that.

there are some controversial articles about refs that are worth mentioning and talking about. But for this one I'm out after this post. not worth it.

[referee99]

That was genuinely hilarious!

"Just maybe a lack of diversity caused them to make a no-call with 50 seconds left when a Wayne athlete was fouled and pushed out of bounds."

D'Oh!

I am a big fan of diversity.

[Juulie Downs]

Of course, we all know that there are individual refs out there that are racist, and that some of those choose which calls to make based on the color of the player. The writer simply makes no case for that being the sitch in this game, or in any particular game. He presents no evidence at all that what he says is true. or that it's applicable to the game he discusses.

And why isn't ne concerned about the 90% black team having a black (or mixed?) coach? Surely if race is an issue in reffing, it's an issue in coaching.

What's most disturbing about this is that he seems to think that a few racist refs can ruin the lives of a lot of kids. I suppose that's possible, although I don't think we really have all that much power. But whether the issue is race, gender, socio-economic status or a bad nose job, I still believe that as long as a kid keeps blaming the referee, the kid is then not getting better at basketball. And when the kid isn't getting better, then the kid isn't going to move up.

When my daughter was playing, there was a game where the refs clearly were planning for my daughter's (mostly black) team not to win. This decision was probably based on race, although it may not have been. But after the game, my daughter's coach (black) gave those girls (and the parents!) a lecture. He said, "Any of you that were going to get a scholarship have already gotten it. So you didn't lose anything. If you wanted to advance in the tournament, you should have shot better, should have blocked cleaner, should have gotten more rebounds. You are good enough players that you could have won this game even if the refs had been messing with the clock. They didn't take the game away from you, you gave it to them."

I think this coach could probably say the same thing, judging from the outcome of the game.

[Nevadaref]

Better lock this thread before Rut sees it.

[LDUB]

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

When my daughter was playing, there was a game where the refs clearly were planning for my daughter's (mostly black) team not to win. This decision was probably based on race, although it may not have been.

So you are accusing the officials of cheating....and you are saying they were cheating because they were racists

[BillyMac]

I'm Irish. Should I not be allowed to officiate teams with mostly Italian players? I'm male. Should I not be allowed to officiate girls games? I'm heterosexual. Should I not be allowed to officiate games with homosexual players? I can hear. Should I not be allowed to officiate games with deaf players? I'm Catholic. Should I not be allowed to officiate games with Jewish players.

We'll I've worked games with Italian players, female players, homosexual players, deaf players, and Jewish players, and I worked just as hard, and tried to do the best I could for these games, as I would do for games involving Irish, male, heterosexual, hearing, Catholic players.

And how did President O'Bama get such a great tan? Us Irish guys usually burn. We don't tan.

[Drizzle]

Then two major plays occurred that determined the 2009 sectional champ. A 6-7, 240-pound Wayne athlete had a breakaway dunk with 10 seconds left on the clock. A Peru player ran and pushed him in the back. An intentional foul, two shots and the ball would have been the right call. The official called a common foul, a one-and-one situation. The official said he didn't want to impact the game.

But with 0.5 seconds left and Wayne leading 43-42, an official called a questionable foul on Wayne, claiming it was an easy call. That call changed the game and crowned Peru the champion. Congratulations to Peru, and good luck.

This is why our state says to NEVER talk to media. You never know how a comment can be used.

[JugglingReferee]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

What a joke.

[tomegun]

Originally Posted by BktBallRef

If three black officials are on the floor and make the same calls/no calls, we never hear a word from this guy. But because the offiicals are white, then they obviously didn't make the call because they are racist.

This happens both ways - I called a T on a black coach because he said my partner, who was white, didn't give him a shooting foul because of racism. I was pissed and whacked that guy quick even though we were the only two people who heard it.

Knowing that it does happen to all races, what race officiates more games?

Originally Posted by mutantducky

now go back watching BET or wherever you are getting your f-uped ideas.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say you are either ignorant as hell or racist yourself.

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

And why isn't ne concerned about the 90% black team having a black (or mixed?) coach? Surely if race is an issue in reffing, it's an issue in coaching.

It is an issue in coaching and officiating. But, I think there is a larger percentage of minority coaches than minority officials. I could probably name 95% of the black officials who are on TV often, but probably couldn't name 3% of the white officials on TV often.

[Forksref]

Wow, maybe I should darken my skin so I have an excuse for blowing a call against a white team.

Of course, I am sure the author of that article is doing all he can to increase the number of minorities in officiating. I think his article would have the opposite effect. Who wants to officiate when your name shows up in an article critical of your actions in a game? And...someone needs to tell the author that we have a few more pressing issues to worry about in this country.


"Is what you are doing getting you what you want?"

[tomegun]

Originally Posted by Forksref

And...someone needs to tell the author that we have a few more pressing issues to worry about in this country.

Screw that. Forget about this article and tell the same thing to the people who keep shoving "Octumom" down our throat!

[just another ref]

diverse: differing from one another

I don't see where the article mentions race. He may want a crew made of a doctor, a lawyer, and an Indian chief.

[JRutledge]

Here is a way to simply take away any claims. Give officials of all levels similar opportunities, then these comments go away. Until you do that, you will have these claims.

There was a claim a few years ago by a coach that said the officials were not Black. Then the state started putting officials in situations to take away that claim.

I do not know the situation here, I do not know if the claim is valid. But when you have a sport where many of the top teams and players are of a certain race and you never schedule officials that look like the participants, then you have these claims.

There was a nationally televised game on TV a few years back with three Black D1 Officials. It was such an unusual thing in this particular conference. I sent a text message to one of the officials working the game showing how surprised I was by this occurrence. He responded to me, "Hey, we thought the same thing."

Peace