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Brigham Young University has been hit by another allegation of racial slurs after five women's soccer players from a visiting team reportedly said they heard the N-word being directed at them.
The players alleged that they heard the racial slur shouted at them and their teammates from the crowd during a game at BYU in 2021.
The soccer players had knelt during the national anthem to protest racial and social injustice when they reportedly heard shouts of 'Stand up, N-words.'
'I just remember that there was like a consistent chant of 'stand up, N-words' during the anthem and right after,' one of the players, who remains anonymous, told The Guardian.
'And when brought to the attention of the BYU coaching staff there was no real response or sense of, like, alarm.'
She added: 'I felt disappointed but not surprised. Backlash for kneeling was not new for our group but to hear that in person was shocking.
'I think both the fans and coaching staff knew we wouldn't cancel the game after the incident, which once again shows this could be part of a bigger cultural issue within BYU as an institution.'
Five women's soccer players from a visiting team reportedly said they heard the N-word being directed at them from the BYU crowd
The Guardian reported that four of the player's teammates confirmed they also heard the chants.
The report adds that a sixth member of the team said they did not hear the chants but that the BYU coach was informed and 'seemed shocked'.
The coach reportedly asked for another announcement to be made 'about how fans should behave'.
The sixth player claimed that the announcement was made but no other action was taken 'to her knowledge'.
As the players on the visiting team wanted to continue, the game did go ahead.
'Your inquiry is the first time we are hearing this specific concern,' said Jon McBride, BYU's associate athletic director for communications and media strategy, told The Guardian.
'[At] the match, which occurred [in 2021], BYU responded to a concern from the [visiting team] about fan reaction when players knelt during the national anthem. A public announcement, similar to one made earlier, reminding fans to be respectful was repeated, and the game proceeded.
'We are not aware of any additional concerns being brought up during the game or any time thereafter. As we have stated, BYU will not
