Cambria Times

Central Cambria Middle School issued the following announcement on July 6.

Former Penn State basketball player Rasir Bolton says he left the university after his freshman year following a "noose around the neck" comment made by head coach Pat Chambers.

Bolton addressed the comment on Twitter, saying that above all, he is a young black man first and more than just an athlete playing a sport.

According to The Undefeated, the incident happened in January 2019 just four days after Chambers was seen on live television shoving a player during a timeout at a game against Michigan.

Chambers was suspended following the incident.

Soon after, Chambers approached Bolton while he was doing a solo workout, saying, “I want to be a stress reliever for you. You can talk to me about anything. I need to get some of this pressure off you. I want to loosen the noose that’s around your neck,” Bolton told The Undefeated.

Bolton said on social media Monday that Chambers' noose comment was "no slip of the tongue," and the comment was symbolic of the lynchings of African Americans throughout U.S. hisotry.

"I reported this immediately to my academic advisor. I confronted Coach Chambers," Bolton said on Twitter. "(He) never apologized, (and) said that he was 'from the north and wasn't aware.'"

Bolton said he knew this to be false due to other interactions and conversations with Chambers, including an incident where Chambers told Bolton he was "really impressed with how well spoken and organized (his) parents were."

Bolton said he and his family went through all of Penn State's channels to handle this situation the right way. Despite those efforts, Bolton said he only heard from the university's integrity office six months later after already transferring to Iowa State.

"I tell this story not because it is not alleged, it was admitted to and documented," Bolton said. "I wasn't the first and I know I wasn't the last. Everyone's position to speak out isn't the same, so I am only speaking for myself."

The Bolton family told The Undefeated that Chambers' comment was "ignorant at best and a form of institutional racism at worst."

Chambers also took to Twitter saying he "realized the pain my words and ignorance caused Rasir Bolton and his family " and apologized for his actions.

he Undefeated reports that Chambers was not required to undergo any diversity or cultural competency training. Instead, Bolton said he was advised by the university on "ways to deal with Coach Chambers' personality type."

"There is a serious need for change in the way players are protected and helped across the country when faced with these situations," Bolton said. "Surface level resources are not good enough."

Penn State's Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Sandy Barbour released the following statement Monday

Original source here.