On Saturday, a video of Vietnam veteran and Omaha tribal elder Nathan Phillips being harassed by a group of white teenage boys from a mostly white county in Kentucky went viral. Did they come to learn from the Indigenous Peoples March? Support the Women’s March? Of course not: They came for the March for Life. While they were there, they decided it was a good opportunity to sneer at a 64-year-old Native American widower while he played a ceremonial drum.
As more stories come out about Covington Catholic High School, somehow, the school looks even worse. Let us count the ways:
First, another viral video is on Twitter, where you can hear a boy apparently from Covington clearly say: “It’s not rape if you enjoy it.”
Here’s what you forgot to report about your #trump supporters. “It’s not rape if you enjoy it” #cnn x #nbc x #cbs x #foxnews x #insideedition x #joerogan x #abcnews x #metoo x #HebrewIsraelites x #maga pic.twitter.com/c7csqAxSaM
— Yashiya (@MeloStreetVybz) January 22, 2019
The young women in the video look shocked—and an adult male in the front of the group, seen toward the end of the video, does absolutely nothing in response to the rape “joke.”
Second: In another video posted to Twitter as of Monday, a group of boys wearing MAGA hats taunts a young woman walking by. You can hear one boy shout, “Slut!” at her. The Twitter poster (who is also the woman in the video) says these boys were also from Covington.
The Covington Catholic boys harrassed my friends and I before the incident with Nathan Phillips even happened. I'm tired of reading things saying they were provoked by anyone else other than their own egos and ignorance ????????♀️ pic.twitter.com/utdPFii92D
— linds (@roflinds) January 21, 2019
Don’t let it be lost on anyone that the student making the rape “joke” is a person who came to Washington to participate in an anti-abortion rally. Making rape jokes while protesting women’s health and abortion rights? Blaming the patriarchy doesn’t go anywhere near far enough with that one. These young men have no problem trying to limit a pregnant person’s agency, all the while making a mockery of sexual violence.
Last, but certainly far from least: Photos and videos of boys at the high school have begun circulating on the internet, showing them wearing blackface and body paint. Where? At a basketball game! With coaches! And parents! All around them.
Here’s the video:
There aren’t really words for how sickening and reprehensible the above video is.
Where are we at now? Covington has canceled classes on Tuesday and has taken down its website. Principal Robert Rowe released a letter explaining the school’s rationale, including the following:
“After meeting with local authorities, we have made the decision to cancel school and be closed on Tuesday, January 22, in order to ensure the safety of our students, faculty and staff.”
The school has apparently been receiving threats.
And the teens? Nick Sandmann, the student standing in front of Phillips in the viral video, wearing a MAGA hat and a smirk, and his family have apparently hired a PR firm. Said PR firm released a statement the following day, claiming the boys are not racist. Vice reports that the PR firm, RunSwitch, has a history of supporting the GOP in Kentucky, including none other than Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Sandmann is slated to appear on NBC’s Today show on Wednesday morning.
And when you think a story can’t be any more upsetting, Trump gets involved.
Nick Sandmann and the students of Covington have become symbols of Fake News and how evil it can be. They have captivated the attention of the world, and I know they will use it for the good – maybe even to bring people together. It started off unpleasant, but can end in a dream!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 22, 2019
Of course he blames the media.
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Embarrassed Kentuckian once again.
Racist teens, Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul getting to be too much. This Sandmann kid 1st of all was in Mr Phillips personal space. The other kids were taunting and jeering as well. These MAGA hat wearing kids represented their hats as only expected. They were attending a March for Life Rally??? How respectful were they for life. (Give me a break)
Trump put that racist touch on the whole thing. This has nothing to do with the dream Dr Martin Luther King. An inappropriate use of the word
“dream” for sure.