A sports reporter who accused a young Chiefs fan of racism against blacks and Native Americans has discovered that not only was the child not wearing blackface, but he is also a Chumash Indian.
Deadspin reporter Carron Phillips accused Holden Armenta of making fun of black people after he saw a profile picture that didn’t include the red-painted side of his beloved football team’s face.
Phillips also criticized Holden’s Indian headdress and “tomahawk chop” gesture, claiming the little boy “found a way to hate black people and Native Americans at the same time.”
That evening, it emerged that the boy himself had Native American roots and that his grandfather served in the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, and that the team’s multi-ethnic group had enthusiastically participated in Holden’s “Indian” chopping gesture.
“Just stop already,” the boy’s mother, Shannon Armenta, wrote on Facebook, “He’s Native American.”
Deadspin reporter Carron Phillips accused young Kansas City Chiefs fan Holden Armenta of wearing racist blackface after seeing a photo that didn’t show the red-painted side of his beloved football team’s face
The Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporter also took issue with Holden’s Native American headdress – before his mother revealed that her son has Chumash heritage
Phillips claimed the boy “found a way to hate black people and Native Americans at the same time.”
Phillips’ comments sparked a storm of debate as he singled out Holden’s image among the 65,000 spectators at the Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium on Sunday.
“It takes a lot to respect two groups of people at the same time,” he wrote in his blog on the sports website.
“This is what happens when you ban books, oppose critical race theory and try to eliminate centuries of hatred,” he wrote in his blog on the sports website.
“They give future generations the ammunition they need to evolve and recreate racism better than before.”
Other websites picked up the story and criticized broadcaster CBS for enlarging Holden’s outfit.
“Everyone is making a huge deal out of this and just trying to show one side of their face to push their narrative,” Real Kansas City Chiefs fans protested on Facebook.
Deadline was corrected by content curators on social media platform X when it tweeted the story.
“The boy is not wearing ‘blackface,'” they wrote.
“The Deadspin article is intentionally misleading. As several fans in attendance noted, the other half of his face is painted red.
And X owner Elon Musk commented on the controversy and congratulated his team for discovering the bug.
“Another victory for @CommunityNotes exposing fraud,” he tweeted.
Within hours, more pictures of the boy emerged showing his face painted in the full team colors of red and black, but the Pulitzer-nominated reporter was unabashed.
“For the idiots in my mentions who see this as a harmless act because the other side of his face was painted red, I could argue that it makes it worse,” he tweeted.
“You’re all the ones who hate Mexicans but wear sombreros on Cinco.”
The football team is under increasing pressure to drop the “Chiefs” from its name, following the lead of the former Washington Redskins, who were renamed the Washington Commanders in 2022.
Since 2020, the team’s Arrowhead Stadium has banned Native American headdresses, and there is pressure on them to also ban the slashing motion, said to resemble a tomahawk strike, that fans use to show their appreciation.
“If the NFL had banned chop at Chiefs games and changed the team’s name more aggressively, we wouldn’t be here,” Phillips wrote in his post.
Holden with his headdress and his family at a recent Chiefs game
Holden’s outfit won him fans among the Raiders’ cheerleaders on Sunday
Avid Chiefs fans have resisted calls to stop using the tomahawk chop
“While it is not the league’s responsibility to prevent racism and hatred from spreading at home, it is a league that works tirelessly to spread prejudice.”
“This has nothing to do with the NFL,” Shannon wrote on Facebook.
“Plus, CBS has shown it multiple times and people have chosen this photo to create division.”
asked the former New York Daily News reporter for his response to the revelation about Holden’s origins.