Roman Celebrates 1902-03 Basketball Team With "Brothers For Life" Assembly
Follow us on Twitter! @AOPathletics
PHILADELPHIA, PA - Roman Catholic High School recently celebrated the 115th Anniversary of its 1902-03 basketball team. This was the first integrated high school basketball team in the city of Philadelphia and perhaps in the entire country.
Their story has been chronicled by Chris Gibbons, Class of 1979, in
The Philadelphia Inquirer as well as been featured by the Comcast SportsNet (now NBC Sports Philadelphia). In the Fall of 1902, the Interscholastic Athletic League notified Roman Catholic that John Lee, an African American player, was forbidden to participate in league play because he was black. When Coach Billy Markward informed the team and asked how they wanted to respond, Captain John Corkery was the first to speak up and say, “If Johnny Lee doesn’t play, then I don’t play.” Then, one by one, each of the other boys stood and said they wouldn’t play either. Roman stood with Lee, and the league backed down, allowing him to play. This moment stands as one of the proudest for a school that has a history spanning 128 years.
Relatives and family members of Johnny Lee, John Corkery and Coach Markward were present for the "Brothers For Life" ceremony at the school. In a time where our country is confronted with many issues and division due to race, this assembly provided Roman Catholic High School an opportunity to reinforce the valuable lesson taught by this team to the current students of how to respond to the forces of bigotry and hatred: “You stand together and become united not divided.”
PHOTO GALLERY