FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — A Massachusetts high school hockey program has had its season canceled because of what one administrator called a "toxic" culture of anti-Semitism among players.
Framingham Police said the incident began in the locker room of Loring Area before a game around 10:15 a.m. on the Dec. 14 and involved between five and seven players of the Marian High-Keefe Tech hockey team.
A verbal altercation between the players reportedly escalated and investigators say anti-Semitic comments were made to a Jewish teammate and offensive texts were also sent.
The alleged victim told his parents, who then contacted the principal at Keefe and an investigation was initiated.
Letters were sent to parents Monday informing them the rest of the season was suspended.
The team manager says the punishment doesn’t fit the crime, and just the specific students should be punished, not the entire team.
"It will always be on them that they were on a team that was anti-Semitic and that's just not right for the children who were not involved in this at all,” said Kariene Disney, the team manager.
Marian Principal John Ermilio said he found "a pattern of locker room activity in which the players admitted to participating in these types of comments and actions."