Latest news with #VHSLClass3StateIndoorChampionships
Fox News
01-04-2025
- Fox News
America's missing moral compass
High school student Kaelen Tucker was rounding the curve during the 4x200 meter relay race at the VHSL Class 3 State Indoor Championships at Liberty University last month when she was whacked on the head by a baton held by her competitor. Tucker immediately grabbed her head and veered sharply off the track. All the momentum she had, the momentum that had propelled her past her slower assailant, was lost. In a wholly righteous world, Tucker would have been the sole focus. Her community would have rallied around her for being unfairly robbed of her place in the competition. They would have talked about all the hard work that she put into her body and spirit to become an elite runner. And they would have shamed her assailant into acknowledging her transgression and pledging to better herself as a member of the community. But we don't live in a wholly righteous society. For far too many, their moral compass is off. After the incident, the assailant, Alaina Everett, told a local news station that she hit Tucker by accident. "I lost my balance when I pumped my arms again. She got hit," Everett said. "I know my intentions and I would never hit someone one purpose." I saw the video with my own two eyes. I watched the video multiple times. Everett whacked Tucker on the head without question. She lifted her arm at her passing competitor and whacked her. No two buts about that. What happened at that moment was that Everett knew she was getting beat. She wasn't good enough for whatever reason. Maybe she didn't put in the hard work or she couldn't find that extra speed. Whatever the reason, that moment exposed her shortcomings as a runner. Rather than dig in and run all out, knowing deep down that she would have to put in even more work, she lost her composure and did the unthinkable. What also struck me about that interview that Everett gave to the local TV station was that she asked for her feelings to be considered. "Everybody has feelings," she said. "So you're physically hurt, but you're not thinking of my mental well-being." Huh? This is sad. No, this is shameful. Everett is trying to avoid the truth and what happened next astonished me. A rally was later held in her honor and the NAACP showed up in her defense. The Black community has been screaming "Black excellence" at America for so long, and they choose to rally behind someone like this? The NAACP chapter from Portsmouth, Virginia said, "Alaina is NOT AN ATTACKER and media headlines that allude towards that in any way is shameful," the organization said. She is an exceptional young leader and scholar whose athletic talent has been well-documented and recognized across our state. She has carried herself with integrity both on and off the field, and any narrative that adjudicates her guilty of any criminal activity is a violation of her due process rights." The narrative is that Alaila did not lie about what happened. The narrative is that our eyes showing the baton landing on Tucker's head with such force are lying to us. The narrative is that we must believe the assailant, we must believe the NAACP, and we must believe those whose moral compass is so far off that even the bad actor down on the corner has more balance. And where is her family? Is there any decent human there who knows right from wrong? In some ways, what happened here reminded me of what happened in Ferguson, Mo., immediately after the shooting of Michael Brown. If you watched the documentary, "What Killed Michael Brown?" Shelby Steele details how the lie of "Hands up, Don't Shoot" took a life of its own. It was completely divorced from reality. What happens when lies like those continue to fester in our society? When the truth lies buried? It creates an immoral streak throughout our society. It permits individuals to shun personal accountability for lies. It permits once-vaunted organizations to bastardize themselves before lies. That is why Everett must still be held fully accountable. There is no other action that she can take other than a full and sincere apology. The only way to end this charade is to stop it in its tracks. It is only until she does, that she can work on becoming a better person and member of our society.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Yahoo
Lip Reader Reveals Alleged Baton Attacker's Speech, Hairstylist Drags Teen Client By Hair For Non-Payment, Racist and Sexist LAPD Recordings Go Public, Kindergarten Karen Pops Off at a Black Woman and Other News Stories From the Week
What began as a viral video of a student athlete smacking a fellow runner upside the head with a baton on the track field has now developed into a pending criminal case. The alleged attacker in question is facing some serious trouble. - Kalyn Womack Read More The Belhaven University community is in mourning after a star athlete's untimely death. A sophomore at the Miss. school, Natalie Black, had returned home after her team's first outdoor track and field meet. But little did the team know that soon after celebrating an unforgettable win, they would be hit with tragic news. - Phenix S Halley Read More A Virginia high school track star was in for quite the surprise while she was running the second leg of a 4 x 200 meter relay over the weekend at the VHSL Class 3 State Indoor Championships at Liberty University: She was seemingly attacked by a fellow sprinter who was just steps behind her. - Noah A. McGee Read More Black folks have a lot to say about the Maryland hairstylist who went viral for dragging a teen client across a salon floor during a March 2 incident. Jayla Cunningham, 18, is now facing a second-degree assault charge. - Candace McDuffie Read More The LAPD just got exposed for a series of disgusting remarks after an individual filed a complaint to the department. From co-workers to applicants, no one was safe from racist, sexist, and homophobic remarks. - Kalyn Womack Read More If there is one thing Black people can count on, it's white women acting like total Karens whenever they feel slightly inconvenienced. The latest example of this happened at Meadow Woods Elementary School in Orlando, Fla. during a kindergarten graduation ceremony. - Candace McDuffie Read More A New York City-based actor who has appeared in 'Law Order: SVU,' 'Power' and 'Boardwalk Empire' is awaiting his fate after he was found guilty of a 2021 fatal shooting. According to 45-year-old Isaiah Stokes was convicted of shooting 37-year-old Tyrone Jones in St. Albans, Queens, as he waited in his car for a friend to show up for lunch. - Angela Johnson Read More Back in 2022, a teen was nearly caught up in a shooting that could've claimed his life. However, police say the shooter stalked him down to make sure he wouldn't snitch and the end result was terrifying. - Kalyn Womack Read More Five years ago, in March 2020, COVID-19 changed the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the disease a global pandemic, leading to several cities around the country banning large gatherings, businesses closing down and the NBA postponing the 2019-2020 season. - Noah A. McGee Read More There's only one person that takes stealing more seriously than police, and it's one Wisconsin kid when it comes to his ice cream. So obviously when his mom stole his prized dessert, the boy set out to make sure she gets what she deserved. - Phenix S Halley Read More For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Yahoo
'Baton Attacker' Breaks Her Silence After Injuring Opponent
Over the weekend, a viral video showed what appeared to be a violent attack during a track meet as one girl was struck in the head by a baton during a relay race. However, the apparent attacker has broken her silence and is claiming that it was an accident. The incident occurred during the 4×200 meter relay at the VHSL Class 3 State Indoor Championships at Liberty University on Friday. During the second leg of the race, Brookville High School junior Kaelen Tucker attempted to cut into lane one during a battle for second place. As Tucker pulled out in front, she was struck in the head from behind by her opponent's baton. 'When we get onto the other side of the track we have to cross to lane one, you have to merge in, and as I was coming up on her she kind of made me get cut off a little bit so I backed away,' Tucker explained to WSLS. 'When we got to the curve she kept bumping me in my arm and when we got off the curve I finally passed her and that was when she hit me with the baton.' The video of the incident seems to show her opponent, Alaila Everett, winding up and striking Tucker in the head with her baton, and the strike was so strong that a doctor later diagnosed her with a concussion and a possible skull fracture. However, Everett is insisting that it was all an accident. "I know my intentions and I would never hit someone on purpose," Everett told Everett claimed that she struck Tucker accidentally after she lost her balance. "After a couple times of hitting her, my baton got stuck behind her back like this, and it rolled up her back. I lost my balance and, when I pumped my arms again, she got hit," she said. Everett says that she has since received death threats and been called racial slurs as a result of the incident. "They are assuming my character, calling me ghetto and racial slurs, death threats," she said. "All of this off of a nine-second video." After the race, Tucker expressed frustration that she did not receive an apology from Everett or anyone else. Everett claims she has tried to reach out to Tucker aftewards but has been blocked on social media.
