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'Boys will be boys?': People fume as 'White' Little League players put cotton on Black teammate's head

'We have spoken with the player’s mother and the coaches, who have assured us that there was no ill-intent,' Little League’s official statement read

WILLIAMSPORT, PENNSYLVANIA: People have expressed anger after a video showing a Little League World Series player's head being covered with cotton by his teammates went viral. The incident reportedly happened Sunday night, August 21, during an MLB game. The clip showed a Black child sitting while other White members of the Davenport, Iowa, Little League team put cotton on his head after taking it out from giveaway toys.

The incident was televised on ESPN and it seemed that the Black player was in distress, making viewers uncomfortable. A user tweeted, "Protect Black kids. The @LittleLeague & @espn should be ashamed they allowed this to happen. The coach was doing it to. And the announcer said ‘Boys will be boys’. My goodness. How can this happen with on national television?" A second user wrote, "This is gross. i didn't see this last night and honestly i'm glad i didn't. the look on his face is crushing me."

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A third one said, "The kid looks absolutely miserable, and WHY did this team of kids have that much cotton lying around and WHERE the heck was the coach 🤔." "That boy deserved to be protected. Instead he was harmed over and over by adults he trusted. That this was so nonchalantly done turns my stomach," a fourth said.

Following the criticism, Little League issued a statement saying "there was no ill-intent." The statement read, "During the broadcast of the MLB Little League Classic, a Midwest player was shown with filling from a stuffed animal given away at the game on his head. After speaking with the team, as well as photos, multiple players on the Midwest Region team were taking part in this while enjoying the game."

"As only one player appeared on the broadcast, Little League International understands that the actions shown could be perceived as racially insensitive. We have spoken with the player’s mother and the coaches, who have assured us that there was no ill-intent behind the action shown during the broadcast," it added.

However, the statement did not help at all as people were only more furious. A person tweeted, "This feels so gross because it is. I’m shocked at the statement little league put out. This is not good enough at all. His face breaks my heart. He was not having "fun." It’s not boys being boys, it’s racists being racist." Another person tweeted, "I need to know if his parents are Black, because I don't see any Black parent being ok with this. This statement is not good enough, and in no way indicates they understand or care about the seriousness of the situation." "I feel like we need to get all hands on deck this is unacceptable @playersalliance @MLBDevelops and all these non black parents pretending it was just a joke, kids being kids can kick rocks!" tweeted another angry person.  

"This is so sad because these are literally the moments that black Americans look back upon and realize how messed up growing up with white people can be. SN: after realizing how this is racially insensitive there should have been reprimanding there. Like right then," a tweet read. Another tweet added, "ESPN should be absolutely ashamed of themselves for broadcasting racism & the Little League should be sued by the family of that poor boy for discrimination!"

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