BELOIT — Beloit Memorial High School students and parents spoke at a Beloit School Board meeting on Tuesday in support of Dilonna “DJ” Johnson after her recent suspension as girls’ varsity basketball coach.
Johnson’s suspension came as a surprise, players and parents said. An explanation for it has still not been provided by Superintendent Willie Garrison nor by the district, beyond communication that it is “until further notice.”
Johnson was hired in October 2020.
Players told Garrison and the school board that they need their coach back for their regional game on Friday against Badger High School and that Johnson was a support for them athletically and academically.
“I have heard every statement that was stated,” Garrison replied after hearing all of the comments. “In these spaces, you may not feel like we’re making a connection, but we really are. As we continually navigate conversations, one step in the process is listening to all of you. This step is very important. It did allow us to hear what you have to say in the most respectful way you could have possibly done.”
‘Something to say’
Amaya King, a senior on the varsity girls’ basketball team, was one of many who spoke in support of Johnson. She asked that Garrison and the school board give those speaking their “undivided attention because everyone here has something to say tonight and we will relay that no matter how long it takes.”
“Whether it has come to providing me with food, clothing, transportation or simply taking some time in completing my assignments during practice, Coach DJ has consistently been there for not only me, but everyone in this room,” King said. “Something that people looking from the outside in won’t understand is that more than anything else is the bonds and the culture that we have built. When you take away the person who has relentlessly built this culture, you are essentially attacking the jugular of the entire team.”
Jocelyn Tibbets, a junior basketball player, said many team members never had a basketball coach stick with them prior to high school, and to keep playing they had their mothers teach and guide them. Prior to her freshman year, she met Johnson.
“Coach DJ has never let me down and has never let me second-guess this program or her. She has taught me to never give up and never settle for less. She was the reason I continued playing basketball. She is the reason I grew up to be the person I am today,” Tibbets said.
At one point, Garrison faced impassioned criticism from an individual who interrupted him while he was responding to the public comments.
The individual said, “Details? How about all the other previous situations we’ve had? When are we going to have answers for all the bull s— that has happened in the past?”
It has been a season of challenges for the girls’ team. On Dec. 19, during a JV game at Westosha Central in the Kenosha County village of Paddock Lake, after a confrontation with a referee and school officials, Johnson and the varsity team chose to leave the school. They had received permission to do so.
As they were leaving, they were subject to racial heckling from some Westosha Central cheerleaders, athletes, parents and fans. An investigation was opened but nothing has been disclosed about any resolution or next steps.
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