Maybe the black chicks just couldn't jump as high.

They can always join the step team.

I would need to see several pictures of both black and white cheerleaders before I can make an informed comment on this story.

I'm sorry, were there any actual facts in that article? I think I missed them. Are there no other black cheerleaders there or something? Is the town 90% white or what? Why aren't journalists asking questions and finding out information anymore? We need an investigative report.

Not enough info as: were they fat and ugly? Fat and ugly white chicks don't make the squad, either.

This thread needs more pics.

I'd bet they just didn't have an alibi.

Remember, whenever a black person fails at something it is because of racism. The only way to fix it is to make tests, qualifications, etc. easier and to lower all standards. This somehow makes things equal for everyone.

They should join the cheer squad of a rival "urban" school. Then when they compete at the regionals, they can blast hip hop music and incorporate "rump shaking" into their routine. I can just picture the white chicks watching with scorned looks on their faces as the crowd directs their support towards the negro squad. That would make a good movie.

This was an issue at my High School back in 1985. There were open tryouts and the students voted on the cheerleaders. None of the black girls received enough votes to make the squad.

/the black girls that tried out were overweight and pretty uncoordinated
//our school was 40% black
///caused a big stink and a couple of black girls were put on the squad
////meh

lordaction: Remember, whenever a black person fails at something it is because of racism. The only way to fix it is to make tests, qualifications, etc. easier and to lower all standards. This somehow makes things equal for everyone.

expect a visit from Diana Moon Glampers.

/obscure?

/the black girls that tried out were overweight and pretty uncoordinated

Bingo!

Problem solved, best cheer leader and cheer evah. Wildcats. My Momma says you ugly, you ugly (new window)

The_Sponge: Jake Havechek: Fat and ugly white chicks don't make the squad, either.


Not unless the cheerleading team advisors are all black guys.

*Ducks*

D'oh!

They should let 2/3rds of them on the squad.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/schools/park-vista-high-cheerleading-probe-ord ered-1542515.html

More details.

Allegedly racist comments were made by other students.

Jean-Charles said she was picked on by other students, and was told things such as, "Why aren't you at cheerleading practice? Oh wait, you're black."

aerendi: I'm sorry, were there any actual facts in that article? I think I missed them. Are there no other black cheerleaders there or something? Is the town 90% white or what? Why aren't journalists asking questions and finding out information anymore? We need an investigative report.

Yeah, this was a horrible article. The story points out the courage of the girls in coming forward with their story but what story? I'd love to hear what happened. Some actual quotes from the girls would be nice, maybe a question or two posed towards the head of the cheerleading coach or at least a transcript of the school board meeting would be nice.

Maybe they just didnt make the cut. Why assume its a race isssue right away? Cant choose someone just cause of their race, if they only picked white girls cause they were white then yeah, it was racist and the black girls should be upset... On the other hand, if the black girls that tried out didnt make the cut but the school forced someone to step aside just cause they needed to fill a quota that would be just as racist towards the white girl that was cut.

It ain't right, but as long as people need to tear others down to lift themselves up, there will be racism. Classism, elitism, all the isms really.

racism is schism on a serious tip.

I agree with most people in this thread. As far as I know, she might be overweight, or just really sucks. Or maybe it is racism, I don't know. I don't see a point in this article if it's just extremely vague information...

Maybe they were just fat.

If anyone wants to see the actual board meeting where this was discussed, here it is: http://www.palmbeachschools.org/Community/BoardVideo.asp

It would be nice if someone's profession was to review original material like this and write it up in an accessible way so that concerned citizens could be informed on these matters. They could perhaps publish it on an Internet-based page where the host of the material could generate revenue via advertising to pay the costs of gathering this information and disseminating it.

What some Black cheerleaders (most I know anyway) may look like:



What some White cheerleaders (most I know anyway) may look like:



Sometimes it's not about race. Cheerleaders are all about appearance. If you don't meet the appearance because you're too ghetto, trashy, unkempt, 'sparkly', or athletic enough you don't get to make the squad

hicksfa2: Sometimes it's not about race. Cheerleaders are all about appearance. If you don't meet the appearance because you're too ghetto, trashy, unkempt, not 'sparkly', or athletic enough you don't get to make the squad

FTFM

Thats an 827: Problem solved, best cheer leader and cheer evah. Wildcats. My Momma says you ugly, you ugly (new window)

This post is full of win.

Schools don't role with A squad (rich white chicks), B squad (poor white chicks) and Black squad anymore? Ah, the days before integration and immediately following integration....

The simple way to resolve this is to say if a group can raise the money, they get to be a squad. They get a faculty advisor or whatever. Cheerleading has never been about The Best. Cheerleading has always been about who sucks whose ass best, and who knows whom best. So fark it. Since there is racism involved, tell the black kids they get to make their own team. There's already segregation, might as well make it the visible sort instead of the invisible sort (the 'we make it look like a meritocracy but we're really the only game in town' sort).

I'm not much of a grammer / usage jerk, but today I make an exception.

Racism = The beleif that there are inherent, geneitc differences in ability, intellegence, etc. between racial groups.

Racial Bias = Individuals making decisions or taking action regarding other people on the basis of their race.

Racism is a seductive idea because there are obvious inherent differences between racial groups. These differences, however, are entirely superficial. There are no inherent differences between racial groups with regard to complex characteristics, such as intelligence. Racism, once the conventional wisdom, has few adherents now.

Racial bias remains common. It can be positive or negative. That is, in favor of a group (typically your own) or against one. Its almost entirely emotional. Almost everyone feel this bias and almost all of them act on it, though often subconsciously. Sometimes also referred to as racial prejudice.

These are not the same thing.


Also, good headline.

Maybe it was racism. Maybe it wasn't. I think the only way to be sure is by examining videos of all the tryouts. Watching young, attractive girls do intensive gymnastic routines isn't exactly my idea of fun, but I don't see any other way.

/A seat over where?

I like how there aren't enough facts in the article...but those girls need to GTFO and stop playing the race card.

ExperianScaresCthulhu: Schools don't role with A squad (rich white chicks), B squad (poor white chicks) and Black squad anymore? Ah, the days before integration and immediately following integration....

The simple way to resolve this is to say if a group can raise the money, they get to be a squad. They get a faculty advisor or whatever. Cheerleading has never been about The Best. Cheerleading has always been about who sucks whose ass best, and who knows whom best. So fark it. Since there is racism involved, tell the black kids they get to make their own team. There's already segregation, might as well make it the visible sort instead of the invisible sort (the 'we make it look like a meritocracy but we're really the only game in town' sort).


Segregation, huh? Get a history book and see how well that worked out the first time.

yert: They should let 2/3rds of them on the squad.

let's compromise....how about 3/5ths.

superspeck: This was an issue at my High School back in 1985. There were open tryouts and the students voted on the cheerleaders. None of the black girls received enough votes to make the squad.

/the black girls that tried out were overweight and pretty uncoordinated
//our school was 40% black
///caused a big stink and a couple of black girls were put on the squad
////meh

Former cheerleader here.
- not conforming to white standards of beauty and coordination does not equal 'overweight and uncoordinated'
- 60% will always outnumber 40% ... even if the 60% mentally inflate the 40% to 400%
- the fact there was controversy enough to cause change are a sort of proof that your first point wasn't why the girls didn't make the team
- it's only 'meh' when you're out of that environment. when you're in high school, HS seems like the rest of your life. It's a relief, isn't it, to get to be 'meh' about high school bullshiat?

Anyway, I've never been to a school where the students picked the cheerleaders. Then again, I haven't been to high school in a long time. I guess they were trying to be more fair than the Old Way of having a very close-knit and damn near incestuous group of cheerleading family/friends/boosters handpick squads, and you'd have to be very special indeed to 'get in' if you weren't already part of the group? I commend your school for trying something new. It's about as new as the politics around choosing Homecoming King/Queen and Class President, but it's new when applied to Cheerleading. Just can't win at that age, eh?


How would you have handled it?

Hey, here's an idea, lets get rid of all High School Sports and Cheerleading and actually use the last three years of High School for College or Job prep instead of entertainment for middle aged failures?

The_Sponge: Tosh

I saw that. The black cheerleaders were cute, but they said some pretty racist statements. What was up with that? Tosh totally set them up too, although probably not intentionally.

ExperianScaresCthulhu: - 60% will always outnumber 40% ... even if the 60% mentally inflate the 40% to 400%

Depending on how they voted that may not matter.

ExperianScaresCthulhu: - the fact there was controversy enough to cause change are a sort of proof that your first point wasn't why the girls didn't make the team

Controversy isn't proof something was done wrong or that the girls deserved a spot.

hicksfa2: What some Black cheerleaders (most I know anyway) may look like:



What some White cheerleaders (most I know anyway) may look like:



Sometimes it's not about race. Cheerleaders are all about appearance. If you don't meet the appearance because you're too ghetto, trashy, unkempt, 'sparkly', or athletic enough you don't get to make the squad

Sigh. You didn't include a picture of a true black cheerleader. You included a picture of a man dressed in a fatsuit pretending to be a woman. And for your white cheerleader post, there's at least one very obvious Asian-American....... who is placed at the very far end of the photo. She is not presented as an equal, the cheerleaders are not presented in a straight line. That is the first thing I saw in that photo. The first thing you saw was 'white cheerleader', you did not see how the most obvious non-white cheerleader was presented; and more importantly, it didn't matter to you.

Frown. Oh well. It's not like Asian-Americans fight for themselves anyway. She probably wouldn't see a problem with how she was presented in that photo, herself. Very different cultural views, Asian-American have, versus blacks. Gotta respect their views, even if I don't personally agree with it.

DROxINxTHExWIND: I like how there aren't enough facts in the article...but those girls need to GTFO and stop playing the race card.



Reverse Troll?......BRILLIANT!

Ctrl-Alt-Del:

Oh admit it, that's exactly what's going on

WTF?
Board Vice Chairwoman Debra Robinson said it's clear the district must bring "undoing racism" programs to Park Vista and other schools.

Idiosyncratic racism doesn't mean the whole country is out to get you, or that there's any problem bigger than one individual, even if there was actual racism involved in this situation.