The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association said in a statement Friday that it was investigating the incident and waiting for an official report from the referee, who local media identified as Alan Maloney.

Activists on social media have since called for Maloney to be fired. Shaun King, an activist and columnist for The Intercept, called the incident \"disgusting and heartbreaking\" on Twitter.

The New Jersey chapter of the ACLU tweeted: \"This is not about hair. This is about race.\"

\"How many different ways will  people try to exclude Black people from public life without having to declare their bigotry? We're so sorry this happened to you, Andrew. This was discrimination, and it's not okay.\"

In 2016, Maloney was accused of calling Preston Hamilton, a black referee, the N-word at a social gathering. Hamilton then slammed Maloney to the ground. Both referees were suspended for the incident, but they both won an appeal and were reinstated, the Courier Post reported.

 

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