COEUR D'ALENE, ID — Officials with the city of Coeur d'Alene responded Tuesday to reported racial abuse that a Utah women's basketball team faced while staying in the city for the NCAA Tournament.
The players told officials they were walking to dinner in downtown Coeur d'Alene when a truck with a confederate flag stopped and began yelling racial slurs.
After dinner, the teams were walking back when they saw the same driver — this time he was with a group — and they all continued harassing the players.
Coeur d'Alene city leaders held a press conference on Tuesday where they denounced the incident and said it does not represent what Idaho stands for.
"I want to make it very clear and very loud that we can be on the strongest in the strongest terms, those horrendous acts of hatred. And if the perpetrators can be found, we call upon them to be prosecuted,” said Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations Secretary Tony Stewart.
Coeur d'Alene city officials said they are investigating this incident as a potential hate crime, and even getting the Federal Bureau of Investigation involved.
