Howard University’s president and club tennis team are calling for accountability in an investigation involving a racist graphic shared by the University of Maryland, College Park’s club tennis team.
“The imagery evoked a painful history of racial terror and exclusion that has no place in an environment dedicated to learning, personal development and mutual respect,” Howard University President Wayne A. I. Frederick wrote in a message to the historically Black college’s community on Monday night. “Our students should never have to question whether they will be treated with dignity and respect when representing our university.”
The College Park club tennis team was suspended indefinitely, the university announced Monday, after players distributed racist programming material targeting Black people ahead of tournament on campus over the weekend. A graphic in a Google document emailed to other college tennis clubs depicted the Maryland state flag with Ku Klux Klan pointed hood masks in the the top right and lower left quadrants, replacing the red-and-white Crossland coat of arms.
Rebecca Aloisi, senior director for university communications, wrote in a statement on Monday that UMD “is horrified and expresses its regret and sincere apology for the harm that this has caused.”
The president of Howard’s club tennis team, Toni Rachal, wrote in a statement that she confronted the UMD team’s executive board last week about the graphic and reported the incident to the University of Maryland.
The College Park team apologized, Rachal and other members of Howard’s club tennis team said. Howard’s club is also calling for UMD club leaders and advisers to receive sensitivity training and donate funds from the tournament to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
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“The imagery is a recognizable symbol of white supremacy, organized hate and violence,” the Howard club team wrote in its statement. “The inclusion of this imagery raises fundamental questions: Why was this racist imagery included in the materials, how long has this image been used in UMD documents and what review process permitted it to remain there?”
In his own message, Frederick, the Howard president, thanked the University of Maryland for its quick response.
“I appreciate University of Maryland President Darryll J. Pines, who immediately expressed his profound concern and offered an apology on behalf of his institution,” he wrote.
The university’s actions, including suspending the team, referring two club leaders to the Office of Student Conduct and requiring the team to forfeit the tournament matches, “demonstrate a commitment to accountability and addressing the harm caused,” Frederick wrote.
Despite the incident, the Howard team showed an “unbreakable spirit on and off the court,” according to the club’s statement.
“In true Bison form, the team stayed the course through the tournament, competed in the final day and reached the semi-finals silver draw,” the statement reads. “The HU Tennis Club team achieved their best result since the Club’s founding in 2021.”
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