UMD Club Tennis apologize over KKK images, suspended indefinitely
Content Warning: This article contains racist imagery.
The University of Maryland Club Tennis team is indefinitely suspended and under investigation for including a racist image in a document with information about a tournament with 13 other schools that they were hosting.
On Friday, the night before the tournament at 10:42 p.m., Howard University Women’s Club Tennis President Toni Rachal said she opened a document sent by UMD Club Tennis. On the first page was the UMD Club Tennis logo and underneath was an image of the Maryland State flag, but instead of the red and white crosses, there were Klu Klux Klan hoods in front of a red background, she said.
The UMD Club Tennis team told Howard’s team that the image was made last year and just copied and pasted into this year’s documents, Rachal said in an interview with The Black Explosion. Howard did not play in the tournament last year.
“A lot of people on the club team are saying that this is the first time they’ve experienced racism in their face like that ever,” Rachal told The Black Explosion.
A reverse image search indicates that the image was originally created in 2017 by Benjamin Jancewicz for his article analyzing the relationship between Maryland’s flag and the confederacy.
The UMD Club Tennis team issued a public apology Wednesday on their Instagram. “A public apology is warranted when the impact of our actions extends beyond those who received the tournament program directly,” the post said.
“Although we did not intend to share an image evoking hate and racism, we take full responsibility for failing to identify and remove it,” UMD Club Tennis shared. “We understand this was unacceptable and does not reflect the values of our club.”
Howard Club Tennis issued a list of demands on their Instagram account Monday. The demands include that funds from the tournament be donated to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, request for an official apology, an investigation into who created the document with the image, and sensitivity training for UMD club tennis leaders and advisors.
In their apology statement, UMD’s team said that a donation has been made to the museum and that they are committed to the education and training of the impact of racism.
Rachal was “disappointed, but not shocked” when she saw the image.
“I feel like racism is very, very common in tennis. Just because tennis is not the most popular sport, it’s not talked about as much, but it’s an extremely racist sport,” she said.
The Bisons said they brought up the image at the tournament to UMD club tennis leaders and the Terrapins were suspended from playing.
The UMD Club Tennis team is currently under investigation by the UMD Police Department, the Office of Student Conduct and the Office of Civil Rights and Sexual Misconduct, according to UMD Communications Coordinator Jordan Dunklee.
President Darryll Pines sent an email to the UMD community Tuesday apologizing and acknowledging harm from the incident.
“We condemned the image in no uncertain terms. It was deeply harmful and offensive, and I offer my apology for its detrimental impact on one and all,” the email said.
Pines mentioned in the statement that UMD will stay in close contact with Howard University interim President Wayne A. I. Frederick.
In an email sent out from Howard to the HU community, Frederick said that prejudice needs to be confronted as institutes of higher learning.
“There is no place for racism, intimidation, or imagery rooted in hatred and racial violence in collegiate athletics, on our campuses or anywhere in our society,” the email said.
Some student groups at UMD are calling for long-term action from the university.
The Black Student Union shared in an Instagram post, “we implore our university to commit to long-term systematic accountability and active harm restoration, ensuring that the impact on Black students is addressed directly, transparently and with immediate urgency.”
While the UMD Chapter of the National Association of the Advancement of Colored People agrees with the fast timing of an apology from this university they said in an Instagram statement that more needs to be done.
“We acknowledge that the initial response must still be followed up with individual accountability,” they said.