Morehouse Debate Team Pulls Out of Tournament After Racist Taunts
Members of the historically Black college’s team say they were subjected to racism during a tournament earlier this month.

Erik S. Lesser/Getty
The debate team for Morehouse College, a historically Black school, has withdrawn from an upcoming competition, accusing opposing team members of making racist remarks. Team members say that during a tournament earlier this months, teams from other schools, including the University of Hawaii, treated them disrespectfully by laughing and rolling their eyes when Morehouse debaters spoke, and allegedly speaking in a racist parody of one of the student’s voices when asking a question. “It would be a mistake to say this was about one round and one team,” said Morehouse debate coach Kenneth Newby. Team member Daniel Edwards said it wasn’t the first time they’d experienced bigotry. “You will hear some crazy shit at a debate,” he said. “And it’s usually going to be racist.” The organizers of the April tournament apologized for not taking action at the time.
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