Colorado Springs cheerleaders allege racial harassment at Douglas County high school football game

Colorado Springs High School cheerleaders say they were racially harassed by students at a Lutheran High School football game on Sept. 24.

"I walked in, and we were passing the bleachers, and a student made a statement saying that I don't belong there and to go to my side," said Sand Creek High School cheerleader Millani Jeeter. "He then made a statement calling me Harriet Tubman."

The cheerleaders claim they were subjected to racist remarks and blocked from passing the Lutheran High School student section during the game at Lutheran High in Parker.

"They were taking videos and photos of us and like yelling out things like go back to where you came from," said Serenity Lewis, Sand Creek High School cheerleader.

Jeeter says when she used the bathroom during the game, an adult white woman waiting in line seemed to refuse to use the stall after her.

"She kind of just looked at me a little confused and disgusted and didn't use the bathroom after me. She waited for one of my fellow cheerleaders to come out, who happens to be a Caucasian girl," said Jeeter.

The cheerleaders also claim a Black male student's hair was touched by students in the Lutheran section when the group passed by on their way back from concessions.

"[He] ends up getting his hair touched by two students who felt comfortable enough to do it. Who were in the bleachers, they reached down, and were pulling at his hair," said Jeeter.

When the girls reported the behavior to their cheer coach, Sanaa Ford, she said she witnessed another incident herself, where students allegedly whipped belts toward the Black Sand Creek cheerleaders.

"You're whipping your belt, and you won't let us through the crowd. That's a threat," said Ford, an assistant cheerleading coach at Sand Creek High School. "I ended up taking a picture of the boys."

"I was in disbelief. I was like, that's not okay," said Lewis.

Ford and the girls say when they finally spoke to Lutheran's executive director, he didn't seem to take the accusations seriously.

"The Lutheran admin did not care," said Ford. "I feel like he wanted to sweep it under the rug."

"They were very dismissive towards everything that we told them. They told us that it was bad behavior," said Lewis.

The cheerleaders decided to leave the game early. On the way out, they said students made monkey noises at them.

"With it being so upfront and in my face and aggressive, it definitely was intimidating," said Jeeter. "I kind of realized it was this hatred that was very racially motivated, and the environment I was in. So it made me really uncomfortable."

In an email to Lutheran families sent on Oct. 4, the school's executive director says he met with Sand Creek's principal and apologized for the cheerleaders' experience, and for "the bad setup of our stadium, and that it was not properly marked for visitors to not have to go through our student section bleachers."

The email says, "We have received no official report of inappropriate behavior by our players during the Sand Creek game." It also states the students involved in the belt incident did not go to Lutheran. The email states, "I questioned them in front of the cheerleaders and their coach, and the explanation was that they were chasing and hitting each other with their belts. A review of the security footage supports that explanation."

The email says the school is still "diligently investigating" the allegations, and says, "Unfortunately, sin exists everywhere, and Satan will do everything in his power to derail us. It certainly feels like he is doing his worst right now. Fortunately, we have a Savior in Jesus who died to take away that sin for everyone. The war has already been won. And in that grace, I can once again reiterate for everyone that Lutheran High School believes that racism is abhorrent and counter to what the Bible says - that everyone is made in the image of God."

This past weekend, more allegations came out on social media. A Rampart High School mom posted to social media claiming she and her daughter were called the N-word by a student wearing Lutheran gear while at Lutheran for a game.

Ford claims to have heard from Lutheran families after sharing her cheerleader's story.

"We had parents saying, 'I'm so sorry. Like we're not used to diversity. This is what happens.' We had parents saying, 'Thank you for advocating because no one would ever.' And we even have messages from parents saying, like, 'I picked up my kid early from the game because they said that the student section behavior was unreasonable. It was disgusting,'" said Ford.

Lutheran High School shared this statement with CBS Colorado:

"Lutheran High School upholds values of respect, integrity, and love for others. Any form of racist language or behavior is a direct violation of those values and will not be tolerated."

The school goes on to say, "We are aware of allegations of student misconduct at recent football games. We take these allegations seriously and are actively investigating them, which includes speaking with students, staff, and witnesses from both schools. We will take any disciplinary action warranted by the findings in accordance with our school policies and will continue to promote a level of conduct that treats all people with dignity, kindness, and Christ-like love."

The next week, Coach Ford made sure the cheerleading team did not return to Lutheran for the JV game.

"I don't want them to be uncomfortable. We're supposed to support a team, and we can't do that. I don't want to put them in a situation where they would feel unsafe," said Ford. "Not one time did a parent say to stop doing that or 'hey, that's not okay.' They were all around administration, and parents were all around, kind of witnessing what was happening and kind of looked a little too okay with it, like it was normalized."

But these girls want Lutheran to do more.

"All we're asking for is accountability," said Lewis. "The fact that we're this young, knowing it's not okay, makes me know that like the adults there should have known that it's not okay."

"Our voice should be enough. Our pain should be enough," Jeeter said. "If we all come together, honestly, as a community, and we all use our voices, you can't ignore a loud voice."

Ford and the cheerleaders say their school, Sand Creek, has supported them through this time.

"Our admin team was fully supportive of us standing by our girls," Ford said. "All I can say is I'm proud of our girls. I'm proud of our Sand Creek admin team. I'm proud of the coaches that I work with, that we're able to open the door for other kids of minority or other kids who are being bullied to speak up for themselves."