Of Racism and Basketball Hoops

Henry Hamilton III and his 10-year-old stepson Tyler Howard strike a dramatic pose.

Was the photographer on a ladder?
(Photo/Jack Orton)


According to some Brown Deer residents, locking basketball hoops at the Middle School is a violation of civil rights and racist.

Yes, that precious right that we Americans hold dear, the right to play basketball on any court in the country.

Brown Deer -- Even Miami Heat superstar Shaquille O'Neal wouldn't be able to penetrate the rims at Brown Deer Middle School.

Each of the basketball hoops is sporting an anti-theft device, known as the Club, that prevents basketballs from going through the hoop.

School officials say they put the devices, which are normally used on car steering wheels to prevent auto theft, on all of the basketball rims on the outdoor court of the school, 5757 W. Dean Road, to ensure public safety.

Some African-American residents in the village think, however, that the device is robbing youths of their right to use the courts. They think the action is racially motivated, and they're letting the school district know.

"It's predominantly African-American kids playing up there," said Henry Hamilton III, a longtime Brown Deer resident.

Hamilton said he and his 10-year-old stepson, Tyler, who will be attending the school in the fall, were shocked to find the devices attached to the rims, rendering the baskets unusable.

"It looks so offensive," said Hamilton, who is filing a public accommodations complaint against the Brown Deer School District. "It sends a message that you are not welcome here. It is regretful that my child had to see that. I want a future for my child that is better than the past."

Blake Peuse, the school's principal, said the move to place Clubs on the baskets - they were installed about two weeks ago and might be taken off sometime next month - wasn't meant to offend anyone.

"We were having a number of people coming in after hours and using our basketball area for activities that we felt weren't the best thing to do," said Peuse, who received clearance from the district's superintendent before the facilities director installed the devices.

One of the things that upsets Mr. Hamilton is the locked hoops look offensive.

Would a bloody pool under the hoop look offensive?

I don't think locking the hoops is racist, and "sends a message that you are not welcome here," as Hamilton contends.

I think it sends the message that violence is not welcome here.

Hamilton claims to want "a future for my child that is better than the past." Are the locked hoops really standing in the way of that?

I think there are far greater threats to his child's future.

Wouldn't it be more effective for Hamilton to direct his energy and outrage at more pressing problems like the flourishing Thug Culture?

Perhaps Mr. Hamilton could be a mentor for kids without fathers in their lives. He could possibly change some lives and really make a difference.

Bottom line: I think the decision to lock the hoops is an acceptable response to violent incidents at the site.

Does the Bill of Rights guarantee one's freedom to use any basketball hoop at any time?

No.

True, basketball hoops don't commit violent acts. Thugs do.

BUT, that doesn't mean that taking preemptive measures to prevent further violence in the area is unreasonable.

Locking the hoops is a way to do that.

Do the good, non-violent kids suffer because of the locks?

Yes.

Are law-abiding good people, the majority of the population, often inconvenienced because of the bad behavior of the few?

Yes.

It's the price of maintaining order in society.