A moment from Sunday’s televised Little League World Series game went viral. A group of teammates stuffed cotton in a Black teammate’s afro on live television. While their hands encroached on this child’s hair, covered its afro while it sat still. However, according to a statement by Little League officials, the players “have no ill intentions” and they have spoken to the child’s parents and coach to confirm.
Every TMZ, The scene unfolds during the eighth inning of a game in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Four teammates from a Davenport, Iowa team, all appear white, tearing cotton from the inside of the gift toy. They then stuffed the balls into their teammate’s hair, covering his entire crown. Meanwhile, the child sat still, showing no expression except looking down and around a few times. One of the kids even made a cotton pattern in his teammates’ hair. Sports commentators seemed to ignore the scene with comments like, “when in Rome.”
Little League’s official statement about the broadcast is below: https://t.co/ljgDuh2QaL pic.twitter.com/3LlruOuQRD
– philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 22, 2022
Little League released a statement
But Little League said the players made no sense, and the child’s mother agreed with their assessment. Here’s what their statement says:
“After talking with the team, as well as reviewing the photos, many players from the Midwest team participated in this game while enjoying the game. As only one player appeared on the broadcast, Little League International understands that actions shown may be perceived as racially insensitive. We spoke to the player’s mother and the coaches, who assured us that there was no malicious intent behind the action shown in the broadcast,” the federation said.
Team Davenport plans to recapture the field on Tuesday. It is unclear what consequences the teammates involved will face. But the video is causing a stir on social media.
