Two footballers from Little Miami High School are no longer suspended from the football team after they ran onto the field with the Thin Blue Line and Thin Red Line flags.
Before Little Miami’s 9/11 game, defender Brady Williams and midfielder Jared Bentley ran into the field with these flags.
According to thinbluelineusa.com, the thin blue line of the flag indicates the support of the country’s law enforcement officials. Likewise, a red flag with a thin line shows support for the country’s firefighters.
In a communication from the Little Miami Department of Education received The Enquirer, Little Miami School Council President Bobbie Grice said the players returned to active status after they were initially suspended from the team.
“The results show that there was no political motivation behind the 9/11 demonstration of support for the first responders, but there were defiance positions,” Grice said. “Little Miami is going to bring players back to active status and this issue will be considered an issue in the Sports Department’s Code of Conduct, with any potential implications to be addressed by the coaching staff.”
More:Little Miami footballers suspended for carrying ‘thin blue line’ and ‘thin red line’ flags on the field
More:What do the Thin Blue Line and Thin Red Line flags mean?
After the Friday night game, Little Miami’s Superintendent Gregory Power and the school board conducted an investigation. Williams and Bentley, who are reportedly the sons of a police officer and a firefighter respectively, were told not to enter the field with those flags before the game, but they did it anyway.
Grice said the only flags that will pass through the tunnel for the rest of the season will be the United States of America flag and the Little Miami spirit flag.
“Little Miami’s local schools are saddened that this story has taken such a negative turn,” Grice said. “The area has an excellent relationship with our local police and fire services.”
After Little Miami initially removed Williams and Bentley, a change.org petition to lift the suspension received 19,512 signatures.
“(Jared) and Brady took out a thin blue and red striped flag onto the field after being told not to,” the petition said. “The school suspended them indefinitely for supporting their fallen hero (sic). Sign this petition to help remove two student athletes who lost their senior season. “
According to the Ohio report cards, there are 4,712 students in Little Miami. Eight-nine percent of these students (4206) are white, 1.9 percent of students (92) are black, and 4.3 percent of students (200) are racial.
Donald Trump Jr. responded to the initial Twitter block, stating, “It’s outrageous that these students were punished for honoring our wonderful police officers. They showed real courage to stand up for what they thought was right. ”
“Little Miami” is due to play at Loveland on Friday September 18th, Loveland sporting director Brian Conutser confirmed. The East Cincinnati website lists the conference as adjourned. Loveland’s game with Milford was postponed last week because Milford’s rival had an athlete who tested positive for COVID.
Josh Jones, a Little Miami alumnus, said he was still planning some sort of two-player support show at his next home game, September 25th. He said he was working on the details but felt it should be noted that the incident had nothing to do with politics.
“Basically, I felt the punishment was out of line with the crime,” Jones said. “Brady’s father is a police officer, Jarad’s father is a firefighter, and this was done in order to honor the memory of the first respondents on the anniversary of 9/11. If it was an online comment, I would say in all caps: it was not political. “
