A Native American man who lives in Michigan, and who participated in the Indigenous Peoples March on Friday in Washington, D. C., said he felt threatened…
A Native American man who lives in Michigan, and who participated in the Indigenous Peoples March on Friday in Washington, D. C., said he felt threatened when a group of teens surrounded him as he chanted, The Washington Post reports.
Nathan Phillips, 64, who is a Vietnam veteran, was at the march in Washington D. C. on Friday when several boys, reportedly from Covington Catholic High School in Park Hills, Ky., mocked Phillips.
The Catholic school apologized Saturday after backlash arose on social media as a widely shared video showed a group of young men surrounding indigenous marchers in Washington, D. C.
The video shows a young man wearing a « Make America Great Again » cap standing near and staring at a man who is drumming as other young men surrounding them cheer and chant. Some of the onlookers appear to wear clothing bearing insignia from the school.
The indigenous man holding a drum was participating in an Indigenous Peoples March and was later identified as Phillips, Native American elder of the Omaha tribe, by Indian Country Today.
In a joint statement Saturday, the school and Diocese of Covington said they were reviewing the incident and they would « take appropriate action, up to and including expulsion. »
« We condemn the actions of the Covington Catholic High School students towards Nathan Phillips specifically, and Native Americans in general, Jan. 18, after the March for Life, in Washington, D. C. We extend our deepest apologies to Mr. Phillips. This behavior is opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person, » the statement read.
People across social media condemned the incident as an attempt by the group of young men to intimidate the marchers and had called for a response from the school.
