A group of students of Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School were filmed pretending to lynch an Ethiopian student in a video that was shot in one of the school’s bathrooms.
According to CBS46, the students involved in the video, which was shared with the news platform by a concerned mother, have been suspended indefinitely.
The video shows the male students with their heads wrapped in white tissue with eye holes. The Ethiopian student’s neck is also seen wrapped with tissue and tied to a bathroom stall.
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The video, which has been widely shared among parents and also circulated on social media, was shot by a student who walked in on the incident. The concerned student shared the video with his parents, CBS46 reports.
“Very shocking and disheartening to know that somebody I sit next to in class, somebody I present my project to, who I talk to on a daily basis at lunch could you feel this way towards me,” a student told the news platform.
In the aftermath of the incident, the faculty met with students on Thursday for a discussion, and later with parents. Some students, however, told CBS46 the school isn’t doing enough to tackle racial discrimination. The school, according to staff, is 56% Latino, 40% African American, 2% Asian and 2% Caucasian.
“I think that the racial discrimination that plays a part in this world definitely, made its way into Cristo Rey you see that in the video and we see that walking up and down the stairs every day,” a student said.
President of the school, Bill Garrett, issued a strong-worded statement, calling the incident “unfortunate” and “reprehensible.”
“This type of behavior will not be tolerated. The students are on indefinite suspension as we do a comprehensive investigation of the situation and determine an appropriate course of action,” Garrett said.
“While we have done cultural sensitivity training with our students, faculty, and staff, clearly we need to do more. We convened the entire student body the day after the incident, and one of our staff delivered a powerful message to our students. We are working closely with the National Center for Civil and Human Rights to develop a program appropriate for our community. In addition, Andrew Young will be speaking soon to our community.
“One of our students perhaps said it best: ‘This is the biggest opportunity to capitalize on restructuring the school community. Never before has the entire student body been so passionate and united on an issue. It would be a waste to not use this to bring us together. Rather than talk about how we’re divided, I want to do something about it.’”
