Black Northwestern players forced into watermelon-eating contests, new hazing lawsuit alleges

Two more former players for Northwestern University’s football team have filed lawsuits against the school, alleging they suffered sexualized hazing and racial discrimination.

The lawsuits allege Black players were forced to participate in watermelon-eating contests.

One lawsuit alleges the player had his Afro cut off by upperclassmen players at the team’s camp in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Like previous lawsuits, it alleges the players were forced to participate in sexualized hazing.

The plaintiffs, both John Does, were on the team from 2004 to 2008, according to the lawsuits filed in Cook County by the firms Hart McLaughlin and Eldridge, and Romanucci and Blandin.

Read more of the reporting on the lawsuits from David Struett in the Chicago Sun-Times.