Local heroes are getting younger and younger. Middle school basketball players from Lincoln Middle School in Kenosha, Wisconsin walked off the court mid-game to defend Desiree Andrews, a young cheerleader diagnosed with Down syndrome.
Andrews, who was being bullied by people at the stands, found out she had her schoolmates and community behind her when three athletes from the basketball team approached the crowd to say "Don't mess with her."
"We were mad; we didn't like that," Miles Rodriguez, one of the basketball players who defended the cheerleader with Down syndrome, speaks out to Kenosha News. "We asked our sports director to talk to the people and tell them not to make fun of her."
Along with Miles, fellow eight-graders Chase Vasquez and Scooter Terrien confronted the bullies who were making fun of the cheerleader with Down syndrome. Andrews appreciated the gesture telling TMJ4 News that it was "sweet, kind, awesome, amazing."
Backing up athlete support and the community's positive response, the Lincoln Middle School has named the gym "D's House" in dedication to Desiree. Now it's tradition for her to be introduced along with the starting line-up during home games.
It's a heart-warming sight to see the students embrace the cheerleader and her Down syndrome, a sign of maturity and acceptance of all kinds of people. ""It's not fair when other people get treated wrong because we're all the same. We're all created the same," Terrien says to TMJ4.
Desiree's father Cliff Andrews was present at the game, and says the inspiration behind his daughter's interest to join the Lady Knights' Cheerleading Squad comes from the popular television show Glee.
"They have a character with Down syndrome who is a cheerleader," he shares with Kenosha News. "And she said, 'If she can be a cheerleader, I can be a cheerleader.'"
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