Alabama high school taunts 'Indians' opponent with 'Trail of Tears' sign

McAdory High defeated the Pinson Valley Indians 34-17 on Friday. (fiftyfourfortyorfight.tumblr.com)

McAdory High School in Alabama is under fire after they unveiled a racially charged sign during a football game last weekend, according to Travis Waldron of ThinkProgress.org.

Before last Friday's playoff game against the Pinson Valley Indians, McAdory supporters unveiled a banner reading, "Hey Indians, get ready to leave in a Trail of Tears Round 2." After the banner gained attention online, the school eventually apologized:

“This was not condoned by the school administration, the Jefferson County Board of Education or the community,” McAdory principal Tod Humphries said in the statement. “The person who would normally be responsible for approving such signs is out on maternity leave, and I take full responsibility that arrangements were not made to have the signs pre-approved before the ballgame. Please accept our sincere apologies to the Native American people and to anyone who was offended by the reference to an event that is a stain on our nation’s past forever.”

McAdory officials also said they would have their history teachers revisit the 1830 Indian Removal Act, which created what is known today as the Trail of Tears.

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