District Administrators Take Action Against Students For Chants At Soccer Game

School officials are addressing an incident at a high school girls soccer game in Elkhorn last week in which some spectators chanted things like “Trump” and “Trump, build a wall.”

The incident took place at a game between Elkhorn Area High School and Beloit Memorial High School last Thursday. The chants, which came from the Elkhorn student section, were seen as a reference to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s proposal to remove illegal immigrants from the country. Many of the players on the Beloit Memorial High School team are Hispanic or African-American.

“When there’s a corner kick on your side or a free kick, it’s a soccer term to yell ‘build a wall’ for the kids to go line up in front of the ball,” said Elkhorn District Administrator Jason Tadlock. “While majority of fans were yelling ‘build a wall’, a couple students yelled ‘Trump, Trump, Trump,’ and we were able to identify, talk to those students and address that behavior.”

Tadlock said the two schools have met and apologies have been made. Involved students have been punished, but the district cannot reveal specific consequences.