A group of high school basketball players for Mendocino High School were banned from wearing T-shirts with the phrase, “I Can’t Breathe.” According to the Associated Press, officials at an annual basketball tournament in Northern California banned the boys and girls teams from Mendocino High School.
The teams wore the “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirts during pregame warm-ups to protest the killings of unarmed black men by the hands of police officers.
The district’s superintendent told the teams that he would allow them to play if they decided to not wear the T-shirts. On the boys’ team, all but one player decided not to wear the T-shirt. However, the majority of the female basketball players chose not to participate in the tournament instead of being silenced by the school district.
The one male basketball player who chose not to participate in the tournament was upset that officials were attempting to violate the team’s First Amendment rights.
Officials contend that the T-shirts could jeopardize the safety of the tournament.
Mendocino County is north of San Francisco and the student body at two schools are one percent Black, 50 percent white, and 41 percent Hispanic.
NBA players such as Kobe Bryant and LeBron James wore “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirts to protest the death of Eric Garner.
