On February 25, 1965, the Jesuit High Blue Jays met St. Augustine (commonly referred to as St. Aug) High Purple Knights in a private game that etched both schools into the forefront of the fight for equality. With Jesuit being an all-white institution, and St. Augustine being all-black, it is credited as being the first segregated basketball game in Louisiana high school history…even though only a select few were able to witness it.
The game held major historical significance; taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana, blacks and whites had yet to compete at that level in the state, even though the National Basketball Association had integrated years before. Also in the midst of the Civil Rights era, tensions were at a high from the assassination of Malcolm X less than a week prior.
Schools in Louisiana had been desegregated the same year, but the high school sports leagues in New Orleans had not. So, although the Blue Jays and Purple Knights were undefeated at the time, and the two best teams in the city, they did not play each other.
Both schools were warned of the dangers and potential problems that could come from the matchup. The schools’ coaches, however, saw the magnitude and importance of making it happen. So, working together, both staffs planned a game, which would take place at Jesuit’s gym. Some parents from both teams refused to let their sons play. However, in front of a very limited audience (no more than coaches were in attendance), the two teams competed for five untimed periods. Although no official score was reported for the game, it was later confirmed that the Purple Knights emerged victorious. Regardless of the final score, unforgettable memories were made that day on the Blue Jays’ campus.
Coaches waited for months before telling newspapers what had happened. But the game was a catalyst; it proved to be the push needed to begin desegregating high school sports in the state of Louisiana. By 1967, New Orleans had made the jump to integrating high school athletics.
**One of St. Augustine’s players, Harold Sylvester, went on to work in film, and eventually wrote and produced a screenplay for Passing Glory, a 1999 made-for-TV film based on the occurrences surrounding the game.**
In the Game Magazine/Web Content
Today in History: The Game Nobody Saw
By James A. Washington
Photo credit: Amistad Research Center
