A community in Irvine, California is rallying together to show support for Makai Brown, a Portola High School basketball player who faced disturbing racist taunts during a recent road game at Laguna Hills High School. John Pehrson, the principal of Portola High School, stood in front of the crowd before a home basketball game on Wednesday and addressed the incident, ABC 7 reports.

"Unfortunately, we experienced some egregious, inexcusable behaviors," Pehrson said, standing on the court with a microphone. "And it's not OK. Those types of remarks are not OK anywhere, and we want to make a statement on that."

Many more administrators, community members and advocates around the country have been speaking up after seeing video of the harrowing incident. The footage reveals several racist remarks from a Laguna Hills High School student who taunted the teen when he was standing at the free throw line. 

"Where is his slave owner? Chain him up. Who let him off the chains?" the perpetrator can be heard saying in the video. "Who let him out of his cage? He's a monkey."


Saddleback Valley Unified School District Superintendent Crystal Turner issued a statement, describing the taunts as "inappropriate and inflammatory racist comments."

"The language and connotations expressed by the words used do not represent the culture, attitudes, or feelings of the students and staff of LHHS, nor those of Saddleback Valley Unified School District," Turner said.

Sabrina Brown said her son heard the racist comments when he was looking at game footage the next day.

"I'm angry. I'm hurt. I've had emotions that have covered the spectrum," she told ABC 7.

The devastated mother also pointed to previous racist incidents she has seen at Laguna Hills High School.

"Last year, a parent from Laguna Hills High School kept referring to my son as 'boy' on the basketball court," she said. "We are from the South, and it is a racial slur for someone to constantly — and I mean repeatedly, throughout the game — call my son 'boy.'"

Speaking with CNN, Makai said he was shocked when he first heard the comments. 

"But it really isn't that surprising that it occurred," he told CNN. "There is plenty of other accounts from other people. And it's not just Orange County or California. It's all across the country."

Makai, who is the only Black player on his team, echoed his family's sentiment, saying there is a culture problem at Laguna Hills.

"This wasn't the first time there is an issue when we played there," he said. "Last year there was another issue. Apparently another parent kept making some sort of a remark towards me. There is plenty of people talking to me, telling me different accounts of 'when we went there this happened' or 'when we played there, someone said this to me.' Even people at that school are saying there is issues within the administration."  

Administrators said the Laguna Hills student has been identified and disciplined. Makai's father, Terrell Brown, said there is no excuse for racist behavior, whether it's a student or an adult.

"Who cares who said it?" Terrell said. "The fact that someone would allow that to happen at that school makes for just a poor administration."

State Sen. Dave Min of Irvine said "this incident was by no means unique."

"Whether it's racist comments at Board of Supervisor meetings or Nazi banners hung from our highway overpasses or a Ku Klux Klan rally, hate is on the rise, and it's unfortunately unfolding in schools across Orange County," Min said in a statement.

Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan also issued a statement.

"This is not a one-time incident — I have received numerous complaints from families and Irvine coaches about Saddleback sports' culture," the mayor said. "I am asking SVUSD to conduct an investigation into the coach and other staff regarding their involvement in incidents like this and bring forward appropriate actions taken."

Makai was honored during senior night at Portola High School on Friday. The senior, who will be attending UCLA or Morehouse College to study psychology, shared some words of wisdom with his fellow students.

"Time will never slow down for anyone," he said in a message shared on senior night. "Value the little things because you never know when they will be gone. Take advantage of every practice and every game, treating it like it's your last, having no regrets." 

Several well-known figures also went to social media to show support for the teen.

"I hope the player who was called ‘monkey’ gets the support he needs," ESPN writer Jesse Washington wrote. "I'd like to know the age of the kid who made the racist remarks. He should face consequences, yes, but also counseling. And the environment that produced him needs to be exposed and changed."

Former NBA player Pooh Jeter encouraged the Irvine community to attend Makai's senior night.

Anthony Kuo, Irvine city council member, spoke up at a city council meeting on Tuesday. Kuo said the racist incident Makai faced "should never happen anywhere."

"This whole city council we got your back," the city official said as he directed his message towards Makai.

"I hope that if anyone ever heard vitriolic racist comments like those in the video, that you would find, develop, and search for the courage to turn around and tell that person, 'you zip it, or I'll come zip it for you,'" Kuo added in a message on Facebook.


 

Sabrina expressed gratitude for everybody who has shown support for Makai, especially his basketball team.

"They have been extremely supportive," she said in video message. "We just appreciate the way they rallied around us."

 

In a post on Instagram, Sabrina said her son was also "subjected to verbal abuse and aggressive behavior by the Laguna Hills Head Coach, David Yates."

"As a result of this verbal abuse, my normally calm and level headed husband yelled at the coach to tell him not to address our son," the teen's mother wrote. "Subsequently, the assistant coach told my husband to 'meet him outside in the parking lot after the game' and of course my husband responded. His verbal response resulted in him being escorted out of the game."

According to the family, the racist insults they heard in the video continued throughout the entire footage.

"Laguna Hills Boys Basketball fosters a culture of aggression, unsportsmanlike conduct and RACISM!" Sabrina wrote. "And this has to be brought to the light and stopped. Please help us in our fight for justice, reform, education and stern disciplinary actions against the coaching staff, administrators and student(s)." 

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