In Wayne County, Ohio, a recent middle school basketball game between Waynedale and Smithville highlighted that racism is still present today, not just a thing of the past.
A middle-school basketball game between Waynedale and Smithville in Wayne County, Ohio, should have been just another night of kids competing, cheering, and learning life lessons on the court.
Instead, it turned into a painful reminder that racism is still alive in places where many claim it no longer exists.
Larry Peek, a Waynedale father whose daughter cheers for the Golden Bears, witnessed the whole thing from the front row and felt compelled to speak out.
In a raw, heartfelt Facebook post that quickly spread across the county, he described how some Waynedale students in the bleachers crossed the line from typical trash-talk into outright racism.
One student shouted at a Black Smithville player who had just been called for traveling: “He traveled that ball all the way from Africa.”
The remark hung in the air.
The young Smithville player ignored it, kept his composure, and continued to play hard, exactly the kind of response that makes coaches and parents proud.
But his mother, sitting on the opposite side of the gym, heard every word.
Megan, the boy’s mom, walked over and calmly but firmly asked the students to stop. What should have been a quick correction from adults turned ugly fast.
Instead of supporting her, a group of Waynedale parents immediately defended the kids and insisted nothing racist had been said.
Some even tried to paint Megan as the problem for daring to speak up.
Larry and a few others who heard the comment crystal clear weren’t having it.
They backed Megan, called the students out, and watched as the kids quickly admitted what they’d done.
A couple of the students later came down from the bleachers to apologize.
The defensive parents went quiet, mumbling under their breath, and the moment passed, but the damage was done.
Larry’s post expressed the anger, sadness, and exhaustion that many parents of color experience in such moments.
“Everyone says racism is dead, that’s in the past. Obviously it’s not if you’re hearing this stuff at a middle-school game. Almost makes me wanna take my kids out of that school. But then I gotta sit back and think I dealt with that all my life in Wayne County schools; it made me who I am today. Makes me nervous raising girls up having to deal with this kinda stuff.”
Via Facebook
He ended with a powerful shout-out to the Smithville mom:
“Whoever you was, the mother of that boy, I give you all my respect for sticking up for your son because I would have done the same thing if I was in your shoes.”
Via Facebook
The post struck a nerve. Within hours, Megan herself commented:
“Thank you, this was me and I’m replaying this in my head wondering if I was wrong but I know my anger was just!!”
Via Facebook
The boy’s father, Twan Steele, chimed in proudly:
“That’s my son the kid you talking about lol trust me I’ve trained him his whole life for moments like this and I’m so happy he handled himself great.
Via Facebook
In his own share of the post, Twan added that he’s always taught his son he’ll face a “different set of rules” as a young Black man and to always respond with class, never foolishness.
He also noted that one of the opposing parents he spoke with afterward is still insisting the comment “wasn’t racist.”
Other locals weighed in, too. Jordan Ray wrote,
“Bring em to Orrville lol but Na I be thinking the same thing bro just cuz that’s how we grew up don’t mean our kids have too. I always consider and still am heavily considering a more diverse school district for my children.”
Via Facebook
Another commenter, Dee Tish, said,
“Good for that parent to stand her ground! Sad the other parents didn’t intervene and correct their kids!”
Via Facebook
What started as a single ugly moment at a Wayne County middle school basketball game has sparked a bigger conversation about how racism still shows up in everyday places, how quickly some adults are to deny it, and how parents of Black and brown children have to prepare their kids for battles most families never imagine.
For the Smithville family, the night ended with their son playing his heart out and his parents having his back, exactly the way it should be.
But the fact that any parent has to steel their middle-schooler for racist taunts from the stands is a reminder that, in 2025, we still have a long way to go, even on a small-town Ohio basketball court.
