Colorado basketball coach hangs Palestinian flag at game against Jewish students

A Colorado high school basketball coach hung up a Palestinian flag during a game against a Jewish school and then refused to shake hands with the opposing coaches and is now facing backlash, the American media outlets reported on Tuesday.

Brandon Rattiner of the Jewish Community Relations Council said in an interview that the basketball game between Lotus School For Excellence in Aurora and Denver Academy of Torah last week Wednesday had multiple antisemitism issues, mainly when the coach, only identified as Coach O., refused the handshake after the game.

On behalf of the Denver Academy of Torah, Rattiner said the actions were disappointing and quite shocking.

“I think everybody in the Jewish community is very aware that there’s been a rising tide of antisemitism since October 7,” he said during the interview. “And we’ve seen it in schools here and all throughout the country on many different occasions.”

Those who attended the game said that the Palestinian flag was hanging over the rafters. Some parents who were at the game said that some members of the basketball team followed their coach’s lead and also didn’t shake hands with the Jewish basketball students, nor did they engage with them.

A basketball passing through a hoop. (credit: Yahoo Sports)

“The key issue here is when the coach refuses to engage with a Jewish coach and Jewish students simply because they are Jewish or holding them personally accountable for a conflict started, not by Israel by the way, halfway across the world thousands and thousands away,” he said to the New York Post.

“Holding Jewish people accountable for the state actions of Israel is a textbook form of antisemitism.”

Lotus school investigated, suspends the coach

The Secondary Principal at Lotus, Ermek Bakyt, told CBS News that the school took immediate action and suspended the coach.

“That coach’s single act doesn’t represent what we stand for,” Bakyt said. “We haven’t seen any flags being hung in previous games. This was an isolated incident, and we took action immediately.”

The Denver Jewish school requested a meeting with Lotus the following day.

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Rattiner said: “There was a really, really good conversation, a health conversation, and they got to a resolution that worked for both schools. There were open lines of communication and mutual understanding. THis was a teaching moment, and instead of just fanning the flames of vitriol and division online, these administrations came together, worked to find the solution that added everybody’s experience there.”