Students at an Illinois high school are pushing back against racism in their own community after a troubling week involving two alleged incidents at sporting events. Dozens of Lincoln-Way East High School students walked out of class on Wednesday, standing in solidarity with nearby Homewood-Flossmoor High School and distancing themselves from the behavior that sparked the recent concerns.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the controversy began during a football game between Lincoln-Way East and Homewood-Flossmoor on Friday, when five Lincoln-Way East students were accused of racially harassing H-F students in the stands. Videos from the game reportedly showed students making monkey gestures and noises, while Lincoln-Way East later acknowledged the incident, apologized to the H-F community and said those involved would face disciplinary action.
The situation escalated the following day at a girls’ cross-country meet, where a Homewood-Flossmoor parent alleged that a Lincoln-Way East coach and athletes made racially offensive remarks and gestures toward H-F runners. Lincoln-Way has disputed that interpretation, saying the coach’s comments were related to a section of the course known as “The Jungle” and were not intended as racial harassment.
That explanation did little to quiet the controversy, however, and by Wednesday, dozens of Lincoln-Way East students had decided to make their own voices heard. Students walked out of class and gathered outside the school, with several carrying signs condemning racism and showing support for the Homewood-Flossmoor community.
Speaking to the Chicago Sun-Times during the walkout, 14-year-old Teniola Omokaye said students wanted people to know that Lincoln-Way East’s wider community should not be defined by the incidents. “There’s a big demographic of Black people that go here and we actually stand for something,” she said. Omokaye added that while she hasn’t personally experienced racism at the school, she knows others who have, saying, “It’s unfortunate that my peers have been targeted, and some of them even fear walking in the hallways.”
The fallout is not over yet, either. The Illinois High School Association has opened a separate investigation into the allegations surrounding the cross-country meet, with Executive Director Craig Anderson saying the organization would work toward a resolution that reflects the “serious nature of this situation.”
Illinois Residents React to Lincoln-Way East Incidents
The incidents also generated plenty of discussion on Reddit, where commenters weighed in on the allegations and the wider culture surrounding Lincoln-Way East. Some who claimed to live or work in the area said the reports did not come as a surprise.
One person summed up the difficult few days for the area simply: “Bad week for Frankfort.”
Others claimed they had experienced similar attitudes in the wider Lincoln-Way community. “I went to a K-8 for a few years in the Lincoln-Way affiliated school district. This news is the absolute least surprising thing I have ever heard. What’s next? Plainfield doing the same thing?” one commenter wrote.
Another recalled an alleged experience at Lincoln-Way Central, writing, “Got yelled at by an ROTC teacher at Central when I called them out for being racist towards the then newly elected president. This is nothing new for Lincoln-Way schools. I’m glad it’s finally getting some attention.”
Several commenters made broader claims about the surrounding area. “Very common behavior in many purple-red burbs in Illinois,” one person argued, while someone who claimed to work nearby added, “As someone who works in New Lenox, this is not surprising at all.”
One self-described Lincoln-Way area resident was even more critical: “As I said in the last Lincoln Way East debacle, the entire Lincoln Way area is very racist. I live here, I see it with my own eyes every day. They will sweep this under the white rug!”
For the Lincoln-Way East community, the walkout showed that many students do not want the alleged behavior of others to define their school. With the incidents now receiving wider attention and an investigation underway, those who stepped outside on Wednesday made their own position clear: they want their classmates at Homewood-Flossmoor to know that there are people in their community willing to stand alongside them.
