Watch: Students in Trump hats spark outrage after confronting Native American man in Washington
As more videos from the incident emerged, it led many to believe that the confrontation was even more complicated than originally assumed.
This happened YESTERDAY in our nations CAPITAL! An elder was surrounded and mocked and attacked in a very violent and unacceptable way. Your children are absorbing this behavior. This is a HATE CRIME! These young men should be investigated by the @ACLU IMMEDIATELY! pic.twitter.com/ijlRWadIwb
— Int’l Indigenous Youth Council (@IIYCfamily) January 19, 2019
I am so deeply grieved and angry by this as young kids in MAGA hats surrounded and mocked a beloved Native American elder yesterday.
— Shaun King (@shaunking) January 19, 2019
When your power is centered in your whiteness, mocking others who are unlike you makes you feel strong.
But it’s weak. And despicable. pic.twitter.com/38FtzGtowL
Videos of a group of teenage boys mocking a Native American man in Washington DC have drawn widespread criticism. The students from Kentucky’s Covington Catholic High School surrounded Nathan Phillips and were seen jeering at the Native American’s singing and drumming.
One of the boys in particular was seen standing in front of Phillips and staring into his face with a smile. The boys were wearing Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” caps and were attending an anti-abortion rally. Phillips, a Vietnam War veteran, was there for an Indigenous Peoples’ March.
After the videos went viral, the school as well as the boys earned the disapproval of social media users from Hollywood to members of the US Congress.
This Veteran put his life on the line for our country. The students’ display of blatant hate, disrespect, and intolerance is a signal of how common decency has decayed under this administration. Heartbreaking. https://t.co/NuPnYu9FP4
— Congresswoman Deb Haaland (@RepDebHaaland) January 19, 2019
A group of students from @CovCathColonels harassed & bothered this Native American protestor at the Indigenous Peoples March. Appalling.https://t.co/bYCdxApcLG
— Simar (@sahluwal) January 19, 2019
imagine getting to be one person in your lifetime and choosing this pic.twitter.com/oPGMN9PHm6
— rob (@robwhisman) January 19, 2019
Imagine sending the students at your school to D.C. on a field trip to protest abortion rights, and you wind up making national news because your students surround, mock, and harass a Native American elder on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.#CovingtonCatholic
— Charlotte Clymer🏳️🌈 (@cmclymer) January 19, 2019
There’s the right side of history and there’s whatever side of it these students are on. https://t.co/EQPDTiBLpq
— Josh Gad (@joshgad) January 20, 2019
One more point: there is a long, long history of the Catholic Church aiding in Indigenous genocide and forced assimilation. From the CA mission system to catholic Indian boarding schools and everywhere inbetween.
— Dr. Adrienne Keene (@NativeApprops) January 19, 2019
In a joint statement, the high school and Diocese of Covington condemned the actions of the students and apologised to the veteran. “The matter is being investigated and we will take appropriate action, up to and including expulsion,” the statement said, according to Reuters.
The boy who was prominent in the video identified himself as Nick Sandmann – a junior in the school – and said he did nothing to provoke Phillips, claiming that he was trying to calm things down. He said in a statement to Associated Press that the veteran approached him. “To be honest, I was startled and confused as to why he had approached me,” Sandmann said. He added that he “believed that by remaining motionless and calm, I was helping defuse the situation.”
In another video on social media, Phillips, an elder member of Nebraska’s Omaha tribe, wiped away tears as he talked about the incident. “I heard them saying build that wall, build that wall,” he said. “These are indigenous lands, we’re not supposed to have walls.” Phillips clarified on Sunday that he did step in as the tension between white students and black men were “coming to a boiling point.”
Thank you to @VinceSchilling of @IndianCountry and many others who identified the proud Native man who is being harassed. He is Mr. Nathan Phillips. I’m reposting this video from “ka_ya11” on IG. This man’s words pierce my heart. The grace. The wisdom. The hope. pic.twitter.com/BKOA40SVq5
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) January 19, 2019
However, as more accounts of people from the march and videos emerged, it appeared that the encounter was more complicated than it initially appeared. Witnesses said black men who identified themselves as Hebrew Israelites were also present at the scene, shouting racially charged comments at the Native Americans and the students.
Social media remained divided on whether the high-schoolers could be exonerated. While some said the MAGA caps they were wearing were a clear sign of provocation, others thought they had reacted too quickly in judging them.