A Colorado high school basketball coach faced suspension for displaying a Palestinian flag and refusing to shake hands with the opposing coach after a game against a Jewish school.
Lotus School for Excellence in Aurora and Denver Torah Academy competed on Jan. 22. The Lotus School informed Denver’s 9 News that the head coach, known as Coach O., displayed a Palestinian flag before the game.
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The Palestinian flag flying atop a flagpole against a blue sky. (iStock)
After the game, the coach reacted to the flag again before shaking hands with the coaches of Denver Torah.
Lotus School’s athletic director Deon Jackson stated, “He grabs his flag and puts it around his neck. We saw the intent at that point.”
The school’s principal, Emrek Bakyt, announced the coach’s suspension along with an assistant coach, as reported by the New York Post.
“It has nothing to do with Lotus,” Bakyt clarified. “It does not represent us, and we celebrate respect and diversity.”
Brandon Rattiner, from the Jewish Community Relations Council, criticized the coach’s actions in an interview with the New York Post.
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Rattiner expressed, “Holding Jewish people accountable for the state actions of Israel is a textbook form of antisemitism.”
The coach and an assistant coach were both suspended. (Lance King/Getty Images)
“The key issue here is when the coach refuses to engage with a Jewish coach and Jewish students simply because they are Jewish,” Rattiner explained.
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