A viral video of a group of Canadian high school students spewing racist language about Black people has taken the internet by storm. But the superintendent for the school district where the teens attend has not declared if the students will be punished.
The clip, which was uploaded to Snapchat at a group gathering, shows a white teen asking others their thoughts on Black people.
“Yo, how much does everyone hate n—ers?” a male teen asks from behind the camera. “How much does everybody hate n—ers?”
“So much!” a female teen responds with a laugh.
“You hate n—ers!” the male teen tells another female teenager.
“F–k n—ers!” another male says on camera. Before the video concludes, a girl echoes the same sentiments.
As the teens make their claims, they’re seen sipping on Bud Light and smoke billows throughout the area. Winnipeg police acknowledged that the remarks are dishonorable but not against the law. As such, officers cannot stop people from posting offensive videos.
The Louis Riel School Division told CTV Winnipeg Dec. 24 it became aware of the clip after students brought it to the attention of staff on Dec. 22.
“It is very disturbing that students would engage in those behaviors,” Josh Watt, executive director of the Manitoba School Boards Association, told CTV. He also said schools have informed students that racism, prejudice and discrimination shouldn’t be allowed.
Superintendent Christian Michalik said some of the teens in the clip have been named as students who attend two of the division’s high schools. The students who have been identified have had their parents contacted.
“Terribly inappropriate and hurtful, and so we just want to ensure that any student that may have been hurt by seeing that video, that we take that into account and we work through all of that,” Michalik, who noted there is “deep regret,” told the outlet.
Still, he said no decision had been made regarding disciplinary action against the students involved one way or the next. It will be revisited in January, and Michalik said families are working with the division to come up with a solution.
“What may be more offensive than the video itself is the school board’s indecision to suspend these students from the division. … The Superintendent of the school division is ambivalent as to whether these students will be punished,” said Melissa Goulbourne, who sent Atlanta Black Star an unedited version of the viral video. “This story is deeply personal. As the parent of a black teenage boy attending school in Winnipeg, I’m appalled by the relative inaction on the part of the school board to discipline these children so as to deter any future racist acts from occurring. I was also born and raised in the city and am all too familiar with how black people are continually marginalized and silenced in and outside of the school.”
Online, others have also made their feelings known.
“Make it go viral for a long time. This could affect them getting decent jobs or getting into a good school. Who would want them as classmates or co-workers?”
“Don’t care just some pathetic kids seeking our attention. But it will come back to hunt them for the rest of their pathetic little lives.”
“But their ignorant a** eating dog treats, lol.”
https://www.facebook.com/ATLBlackStar/videos/608634492900369/
