I really don't want to show you this, but I have to.
A referee was jumped by players and coaches at a youth basketball game on Sunday in Atlanta, and it reminded me a lot of where I believe we're headed as a culture.
[Warning: Violence]
Very unpleasant stuff.
And a great example of what not to do…
EVER!
More from TMZ:
The alarming scene went down Sunday at Stronghold Christian Church in Lithonia, GA ... when, following a contest on the floor, multiple players from one of the teams went after one of the game's refs...
No word on if the man sustained serious injuries ... but a spokesperson for the Dekalb County Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports cops did respond to the scene in reference to an assault.
The spokesperson added an investigation into the incident is underway.
A rep for the church, meanwhile, said in a statement following the game, "It is truly unfortunate about the turn of events that took place during the basketball game held at our facility this weekend."
Shame.
I'm sorry, but as Americans, we must do better than this. Or else this is what we will look like at a societal level.
Sometimes, if the outcome doesn't sit quite right with us in life, well, we just attack the referee.
The police officer, the teacher, the Target employee. There are so many examples of these "referees" in our society.
These people enforce the rules. They don't make them.
And they do not deserve this kind of treatment.
Sure, we may not approve of all the rules in the book. And sometimes a referee will make a few mistakes.
But that doesn't mean we are excused when we beat the snot out of a man who just made $20 on a Sunday to referee a few basketball games.
I'm telling you, this type of behavior will not end in a good place. Especially when it bleeds over to society as a whole and we start turning to violence whenever something doesn't go our way.
I'm ashamed in the human race....
Okay, let's be positive real quick.
Look at #10 in blue.
This kid was in on it. He knew what was about to go down, but he quietly slipped away because he knew it was the wrong thing to do.
This is a great form of protest.
So let's all try to be more like #10. And if we can, and it's safe, let's discourage this evil behavior as best we can.
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