October 23, 2019 at 01:06PM
SANTA CLARA — The male cheerleader allegedly subjected to homophobic slurs from members of the Wilcox High School football team did not attend school Tuesday after being threatened by a group of boys, his father said.
"I'm not sure how they are going to" protect "his safety when it's time to go back to school," the father said in a text Tuesday.
The father added that a Chargers football player also was threatened by teammates at the Santa Clara school after it was revealed that he provided the family with screenshots that corroborate the alleged slurs. The family has not provided this news organization with copies of the screenshots.
On Monday, Wilcox administrators asked the Santa Clara Police Department to investigate allegations that some football players leveled homophobic slurs at a 14-year-old male cheerleader during a pep rally and later at halftime of the varsity team's football game Friday night.
Authorities started their investigation Monday on campus, the father said.
"What we can say is that we are investigating reports of inappropriate conduct and determining if it rises to a criminal matter," police Capt. Wahid Kazem said
This news organization is not identifying the alleged victim and his family because he is a minor.
Wilcox administrators, varsity football coach Paul Rosa and two cheerleading coaches have declined to comment, referring questions to the Santa Clara Unified School District officials.
School district spokeswoman Jennifer Dericco did not respond Tuesday to an interview request. She said in a statement released Monday: "At Santa Clara Unified School District, we proactively work to create an environment that embraces diversity and we do not tolerate harassment or bullying of any kind."
The situation led Cupertino High athletic director James Gilmore to talk to his school's lone male cheerleader to make sure he felt safe, Gilmore said Tuesday.
"It did open my eyes that he could be in jeopardy," said Gilmore, a father of three living within the Wilcox High school boundary.
Gilmore's wife, Jane Martin-Gilmore, signed a petition at change.org protesting the actions of the football players involved that had more than 3,500 signatures by Tuesday afternoon. She also wrote at the petition's site, "As a teacher, parent in the district, wife of an athletic director, and former high school cheerleading coach I find this morally reprehensible and absolutely unacceptable. These players need to publicly apologize and accept the consequences of their actions, which at minimum should include suspension from the team. The football coach and principal also need to address this publicly. If this toxic and dangerous behavior is not taken care of in a transparent and swift manner I will seriously reconsider sending my own children to Wilcox."
James Gilmore said if the situation is not handled satisfactorily they will send their children to another school.
Trevor Pruitt, Carlmont High's defensive coordinator, said he once benched a star player at another school for making a homophobic slur to a male cheerleader.
"If we're not reprimanding people for their behaviors, especially if they are mistreating another person, we're not doing our jobs as educators," Pruitt said. "We need to make sure all humans are being treated accordingly and there is never a gray area."
The alleged victim posted a tweet Sunday night, verified by his father, admonishing those who he said attacked him.
The tweet read, "I am a boy and i am on the cheer team. i understand that people might think that's different but when it comes down to it nobody deserves to be talked about in a negative way at all. it doesn't matter your sexual orientation, your gender, your religion, your race or anything else
"everyone should be treated equally and it hurts my heart that people on the football team that are almost fully grown and are talking about me and my teammates and bashing us for no reason other than me being gay and a freshman and my friends sticking up for me.
"THEN saying that nobody was talking bad about us or anything during the rally the people behind you heard everything you said and know your jersey number. i had nothing but respect for every single person on that team and everyone else i had no negative opinions on anyone.
"i mind my business everyday when i get to school and i never wanted anything bad to happen to myself, anyone that i care about, and everyone else otherwise. thank you to everyone that is doing what they can to help me and my teammates, and everyone that is checking up on me."
Former Wilcox cheerleader Jasmine Kochan, a 2018 graduate, said the Chargers had a male cheerleader during three of her years on the squad and he never received hurtful taunts.
"He was more praised for being a cheerleader," she said Tuesday. "A lot of players respected him. It's kind of weird to see how things have changed."
Kochan, who is friends with the alleged victim's sister, also a former Wilcox cheerleader, said the situation has caused the school embarrassment.
"Just to see the respect level for the cheerleading group as a whole going down" hurts, Kochan said.
The allegations come at a time that Wilcox's football team is preparing for the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs that begin Nov. 15. The team is off this weekend, then travels to crosstown rival Santa Clara on Nov. 1 before ending the regular season at home Nov. 8 against Sunnyvale-Fremont. Wilcox (6-2 overall) is considered to be heavily favored to win both of those games.
The Chargers, coming off a state championship last season, are 4-0 in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League's De Anza Division and ranked No. 8 in the Bay Area by this news organization.
Their only two losses were on the road against heavyweights Valley Christian and Pittsburg in competitive games.
Staff writer Robert Salonga contributed to this report.
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If you have not already, we strongly encourage you to sign up for a digital subscription, which gives you access to all content on the Mercury News and East Bay Times websites. With your support, we can continue bringing these stories — and much more — to your screens. Here's where to sign up for the season pass: Mercury News, East Bay Times.
SANTA CLARA — The male cheerleader allegedly subjected to homophobic slurs from members of the Wilcox High School football team did not attend school Tuesday after being threatened by a group of boys, his father said.
"I'm not sure how they are going to" protect "his safety when it's time to go back to school," the father said in a text Tuesday.
The father added that a Chargers football player also was threatened by teammates at the Santa Clara school after it was revealed that he provided the family with screenshots that corroborate the alleged slurs. The family has not provided this news organization with copies of the screenshots.
On Monday, Wilcox administrators asked the Santa Clara Police Department to investigate allegations that some football players leveled homophobic slurs at a 14-year-old male cheerleader during a pep rally and later at halftime of the varsity team's football game Friday night.
Authorities started their investigation Monday on campus, the father said.
"What we can say is that we are investigating reports of inappropriate conduct and determining if it rises to a criminal matter," police Capt. Wahid Kazem said
This news organization is not identifying the alleged victim and his family because he is a minor.
Wilcox administrators, varsity football coach Paul Rosa and two cheerleading coaches have declined to comment, referring questions to the Santa Clara Unified School District officials.
School district spokeswoman Jennifer Dericco did not respond Tuesday to an interview request. She said in a statement released Monday: "At Santa Clara Unified School District, we proactively work to create an environment that embraces diversity and we do not tolerate harassment or bullying of any kind."
The situation led Cupertino High athletic director James Gilmore to talk to his school's lone male cheerleader to make sure he felt safe, Gilmore said Tuesday.
"It did open my eyes that he could be in jeopardy," said Gilmore, a father of three living within the Wilcox High school boundary.
Gilmore's wife, Jane Martin-Gilmore, signed a petition at change.org protesting the actions of the football players involved that had more than 3,500 signatures by Tuesday afternoon. She also wrote at the petition's site, "As a teacher, parent in the district, wife of an athletic director, and former high school cheerleading coach I find this morally reprehensible and absolutely unacceptable. These players need to publicly apologize and accept the consequences of their actions, which at minimum should include suspension from the team. The football coach and principal also need to address this publicly. If this toxic and dangerous behavior is not taken care of in a transparent and swift manner I will seriously reconsider sending my own children to Wilcox."
James Gilmore said if the situation is not handled satisfactorily they will send their children to another school.
Trevor Pruitt, Carlmont High's defensive coordinator, said he once benched a star player at another school for making a homophobic slur to a male cheerleader.
"If we're not reprimanding people for their behaviors, especially if they are mistreating another person, we're not doing our jobs as educators," Pruitt said. "We need to make sure all humans are being treated accordingly and there is never a gray area."
The alleged victim posted a tweet Sunday night, verified by his father, admonishing those who he said attacked him.
The tweet read, "I am a boy and i am on the cheer team. i understand that people might think that's different but when it comes down to it nobody deserves to be talked about in a negative way at all. it doesn't matter your sexual orientation, your gender, your religion, your race or anything else
"everyone should be treated equally and it hurts my heart that people on the football team that are almost fully grown and are talking about me and my teammates and bashing us for no reason other than me being gay and a freshman and my friends sticking up for me.
"THEN saying that nobody was talking bad about us or anything during the rally the people behind you heard everything you said and know your jersey number. i had nothing but respect for every single person on that team and everyone else i had no negative opinions on anyone.
"i mind my business everyday when i get to school and i never wanted anything bad to happen to myself, anyone that i care about, and everyone else otherwise. thank you to everyone that is doing what they can to help me and my teammates, and everyone that is checking up on me."
Former Wilcox cheerleader Jasmine Kochan, a 2018 graduate, said the Chargers had a male cheerleader during three of her years on the squad and he never received hurtful taunts.
"He was more praised for being a cheerleader," she said Tuesday. "A lot of players respected him. It's kind of weird to see how things have changed."
Kochan, who is friends with the alleged victim's sister, also a former Wilcox cheerleader, said the situation has caused the school embarrassment.
"Just to see the respect level for the cheerleading group as a whole going down" hurts, Kochan said.
The allegations come at a time that Wilcox's football team is preparing for the Central Coast Section Division I playoffs that begin Nov. 15. The team is off this weekend, then travels to crosstown rival Santa Clara on Nov. 1 before ending the regular season at home Nov. 8 against Sunnyvale-Fremont. Wilcox (6-2 overall) is considered to be heavily favored to win both of those games.
The Chargers, coming off a state championship last season, are 4-0 in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League's De Anza Division and ranked No. 8 in the Bay Area by this news organization.
Their only two losses were on the road against heavyweights Valley Christian and Pittsburg in competitive games.
Staff writer Robert Salonga contributed to this report.
SEASON PASS DIGITAL OFFER
If you have not already, we strongly encourage you to sign up for a digital subscription, which gives you access to all content on the Mercury News and East Bay Times websites. With your support, we can continue bringing these stories — and much more — to your screens. Here's where to sign up for the season pass: Mercury News, East Bay Times.