Maryland Suspends Club Tennis Team Over Racist Imagery

The University of Maryland indefinitely suspended its club tennis team after the university said members distributed tournament materials containing racist imagery targeting Black people. The school referred the matter to campus police and its Office of Student Conduct, where an investigation is underway. The materials were sent to other university tennis clubs in connection with a fall tournament at College Park. University staff learned of them on Saturday, October 10, according to the school. The tournament continued, but Maryland’s club team forfeited its matches. Howard University’s club tennis team said its players found the image in a shared Google document. The Howard team described it as pointed white hoods associated with the Ku Klux Klan replacing the coat of arms on the Maryland state flag. That description was attributed to the team in the available reporting; the supplied accounts do not establish who created the graphic or how it was added to the document. The University of Maryland said its club’s student leaders met with visiting team captains, acknowledged the harm and apologized. They also emailed apologies to the invited club programs.