Florida Today
Titusville, FL (Florida Today) -- Eight Titusville High baseball players initially suspended after
making an after-hours, on-campus version of the "Harlem Shake," dance
sensation that was filmed and put online, will have to perform community
service and other tasks before being allowed to play again, school
officials said.
This Internet craze, where
people create and post their own versions of the dance, has gotten
students across the nation into trouble as they strip off clothes and
dance wildly to the synth-heavy song of the same name in classrooms,
gyms and locker rooms.
The
video of the Titusville athletes, including some wearing sliding shorts
and Titusville Terrier shirts, garnered nearly 700 views on YouTube
before being taken down.
"The
students were engaged in inappropriate gestures while wearing portions
of their baseball uniforms. They will have an opportunity to earn their
way back onto the team," said Michelle Irwin, spokeswoman for Brevard
Public Schools.
The
suspensions drew the attention of other students who used Twitter and
other social media to demand the baseball team members be allowed back
on the field.
Following
a meeting with the players, the coach wrote a letter to parents noting
that they can only return to practice after completing a round of
community service, cleanup duty following games and additional physical
training.
"This
has been a difficult situation for all involved. I hope these young men
will learn from this and will be good examples from here on out for the
younger kids to look up to," Mark Lewis, coach of the 14-member
Titusville Terriers varsity team, wrote in a letter to parents that was
obtained by FLORIDA TODAY.
Andrew C. Steele, an attorney whose 17-year-old son was one of the students suspended, has seen the video several times.
"It's
no different than what you see at a Brevard school dance," said Steele,
adding that a number of coaches were working in and around the school's
baseball field at the time the team members were filmed near the
dugout.
"These
coaches lacked the courage to inquire about what was happening, they
gave a tacit approval of what happened," Steele said. "I feel that the
coaches that were there showed no character and did not step up to admit
they were there."
Lewis referred all questions to school district officials.
The
Harlem Shake is a three decade-old dance that originated in the New
York borough where teens casually rhythmically snapped their shoulders
side-to-side. The latest dance featured on the video is a loose
adaption, with the first portion of the dance involving a person -
usually in a mask or costume - initiating a dance that later involves
others in various stages of dress during a 30-second music track.
In
New York City, a dozen high school hockey team members were suspended
and told they could not participate in the playoffs because they made a
scantily-clad version of the video.
The
videos have been made in subways, swimming pools, military bases, TV news stations, parks, stadiums, living rooms and as far away as Egypt and Japan.