Two football playing students from Utah’s Kearns High School have been suspended for sharing a video of them giggling and burning a rainbow flag while saying “All gays die!” Police are also investigating.
The video was first posted on Snapchat by a 15-year-old incoming freshman and it was shared by another current student.
Granite School District spokesman Ben Horsley told ABC News, “We want to make sure every student who walks through our doors feels safe and secure in the environment that they’re in. Looking at the video, whether if it was intended as a joke or as a serious and broad threat against LGBTQ individuals, it’s still a reprehensible act. We need to condemn hatred and bigotry wherever we see it.”
Related: Students Welcomed Back To School With Burned Pride Flag And A Note: “F*gs Get AIDS More Often”
He added that while it’s unclear what discipline the students will face, penalties could range from suspension to mandatory community service. Other community members have called for the football program to be cancelled, but that’s unlikely considering that only two team members were implicated and football generates lots of money for both individual schools and school districts.
The school district also said they’ve contacted LGBTQ community leaders to suggest future empathy exercises and educational opportunities so hateful little meat-heads won’t do something stupid like this ever again. (Though the district spokesperson didn’t use those exact words.)
Matt Rickards, head coach of the Kearns High School team told Salt Lake City Fox affiliate KSTU, “There’s no place for that in our program at all, and it won’t be tolerated. 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 and, obviously, that rule was broken. So, there’s got to be consequences for that.”
Here’s a video which shows footage of the burning flag:
Burning Pride flags seems to have become a recent trend among antigay haters. Earlier this month, a vandal burned a rainbow flag outside of New York City’s only black-owned gay bar; in May, someone burned a rainbow flag outside of a Philadelphia boutique; and in April, someone burned a straight couple’s rainbow flag in Charleston, South Carolina.
What these haters don’t realize that burning our flag only makes our community even louder and more united in the face of hate, whether that hate comes from dumb high schoolers, random vandals or spiteful bigots.
Cam
Two comments
1. Hey School, if you’re looking for a punishment, just think what you would have done if they had burned the LDS flag and said “All Mormons should die”. Now go from there.
2. Anybody else think these two probably went home and sucked each other off after they did this? (But we were SOOOOO Drunk!)
Aires the Ram
Yes to #1, and Yes to #2.
patricklee5150
Perfect! And, you know they did! Self hating Mormon queers. Poor, confused people.
CarrieV
Upvoted to infinity.
fur_hunter
Excellent comment. It is so interesting to see the reactions of folks when the shoe is on the other foot. Remember Sarah the c nt Huckabee when she was refused service at the Red Hen Restaurant? Yet, that itch saw NO PROBLEM with gays being denied service from a baker in Colorado.
christopher_bond
Oh yeh. No doubts at all.
TomG
They learn this from the parents, so blame them as well.
Chrisk
Nothing less then suspending them will teach them anything.
BigJohnSF
All Mormons die as well – despite the magic underwear.
davey14
Maybe they should watch a documentary on violence against the LGBTQ community. Matthew Shepard comes to mind.
fur_hunter
Davey….That would do no good. They would be cheering for the dip sh ts that committed the murder. They have a thinking pattern that everything should be ‘their way’ and others don’t count.
rbmcobra
I used to live in Utah. Not surprised at all. I was run out if the State when my neighbors found out I was gay. I was labeled a pedophile, I received numerous death threats, had rocks thrown through my house windows and had my car vandalized. The police said if I don’t like it here, then move! So I did!!! The worse part was that at the time I was a good upstanding Mormon who had done nothing wrong. I even qualified for a temple recommend. Horrible, evil place to live. Full of two face hypocrites who should all burn in hell!
patricklee5150
How awful! I’m sorry you experienced that. Those so-called Christians who don’t seem to know anything that Christ taught! He never mentioned anything about gay people, but he did talk a lot about loving others & do unto others, etc. They go by the Book of Mormon, not the Bible…because they’re a Cult!
fur_hunter
I do hope you are no longer a Mormon. I tell folks who are gay that if they are a Baptist, they are idiots. Why would you want to be a member of a group that HATES YOU???? Baptists are the most hate-mongering and discriminating of virtually ALL religions. Just look at the morons of the Westboro Baptist Church. If that doesn’t convince you, then YOU TRULY ARE AN IMBECILE!!!!
NSB2244
Such an over the top response usually only means one thing..there are some closeted players on that team!
patricklee5150
Exactly!
fur_hunter
Perfect examples of the line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
ShiningSex
They’re trash. Trumptards support such actions and will call it freedom of speech. Idiots
acna64
Perhaps these men need to be kicked off the team. Because of harsh and threatening actions. Maybe they need to be suspended from school for the rest of the year. And redo the grades they are in. Should also be noted that each one who is threatening should be put on a citizen alert so if some of them do something harmful to any one they will be put in jail for 10 years.
trunksy
The “meatheads” learn it from someone *cough* parents *cough* so I’m not sure how much we can blame the kids. Calling it just the jocks being jocks is giving it a pass (jock privilege vs white privilege?).
justgeo
SUSPENSION IS TOO EASY EXPELL THEM make them do community service at an AiDES hospice or something. Put their parents in jail of acts against humanity for a start.
Mack
They’ll probably just get a slap on the wrist, after all they probably belong to the Church of Morons.
lovethyneighbor
All I can say is “Wow.” You’re telling me this goes on in Utah, the Mormon capital of the world? I guess this would be the likely outcome. Unfortunately, I think a lot of Mormons stay closeted because of the repercussions and ostracizing of gay Mormons from their families is a painful outcome if anyone comes out of the proverbial closet. I feel for those, who feel frightened to come out; however, chanting “All gays die” only leads to the social harm they are inflicting on those, who need or want to come out.
Putting aside they are football players and make the schools they represent good money, there must be a deterrent to this bad behavior. I think it’s unlikely to happen as money or love of money rules the world. Maybe instead of suspending the students, you could bring their parents and elders into court and fine them for influencing young minds in a deviant manner. It’s one thing to teach that homosexuality is wrong according to their belief; however, it’s something else when the result is students burning a rainbow flag and chanting hate speech to intimidate others. To be honest, this crap is getting old. The lines are beginning to get blurred as to what is a hate crime, and what is just students trying to get attention. I believe it is a mixture especially when these actions occur within a strict, rigid, and religious environment such as the Mormon code. We should pray for them. As for me, I’m a gay man, who will pray for them, and hope they are redeemable before they harm someone.
christopher_bond
I agree with you completely. And do pray your heart out for them. And since prayer has never actually been effective in bringing anything about, I support you in the prayer thing too.
boymikefl
This is the way I look at this stuff and the Parkland kid. People even today, have mob mentality thinking that they’re less culpable. This boy was coming into a new school and a big boy team and he may have been scared. Seems like the religion would look the other way. I think it was done for him to project strength. Backfired. Not sure how this is perceived there in general. Maybe not a big deal. Sad. Ice age. Not familiar with Mormonism.
Celtic
Immature. Sad. Idiotic. These boys likely have suppressed homosexual issues/desires. Acting out seems to be a way to “kill one’s own demons”. It is not. For all we know, there may be gays on the football team. What these two lads have achieved for themselves is a notoriety that will take a while to live down. Of course, the other side of this is how many “silent” people condone what they did.
IanHunter
Then they continued their signs of brotherhood by having a circle jerk in the locker room.
CurtisIsTheOne
What they did was stupid, idiotic and homophobic, but keep in mind that these were high school students. And high school students are notorious for exercising poor judgement about ALL things. What’s called for is a 3 or 4 game suspension and mandatory sensitivity training. I expect we’ll see these same students at a future Pride Event if they ever get out of Utah. Those who argue the loudest…
johnnymcmxxx
They should be made to do many hours of community service at a Gay Community Center, wherever it may be in Utah, but I know of one in SLC. Get these bitches right up in the faces of many Gay people who outnumber them for once.
Doug
That would definitely be the right thing to do, but I’d bet good money the high school would never do it.
Creamsicle
It’s disappointing and sad to see young kids still being bigoted and hateful, but I’m encouraged that atschool district in Utah is at least publicly taking a hard stance against this behavior.
They’re kids. They suck. Lots of us sucked at that age. We should give them a chance to grow past this. If they do, then remembering their own shameful behavior will be a lifelong punishment.
BRENT
I am English and therefore civilised. This kind of behaviour would not be tolerated here under any circumstances, but I recognise that America is a foreign land and they do things differently there. Maybe, in a thousand years from now, the ignorant and demi-educated mass of Americans might catch up with the rest of the Anglosphere, but I doubt it. The race is run; the prize is given. Think on that, and reflect.
Invalid
“antigay haters”?