Kentucky HS Student In Viral Video With Native American Explains His Actions
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The student at the center of the Lincoln Memorial incident causing nationwide controversy says the confrontation with a Native American protester is being completely misrepresented.
In a statement released through a PR firm, Nick Sandmann says he was approached by Nathan Phillips after he started to lead school spirit chants in response to “derogatory insults,” including racial taunts, being directed at the group of Covington Catholic High School students by a group of African-American protesters, NBC reports.
Phillips “locked eyes with me and approached me, coming within inches of my face,” Sandmann writes. “I never interacted with this protester. I did not speak to him,” he writes. “I did not make any hand gestures or other aggressive moves.” He says he has received death threats since the Friday confrontation became national news.
“I believed that by remaining motionless and calm, I was helping to diffuse (sic) the situation,” the statement says. “I did smile at one point because I wanted him to know that I was not going to become angry, intimidated or be provoked into a larger confrontation,” writes Sandmann, who firmly denies that he has “hateful feelings” or that any of the group behaved in a racist manner.
He says the group, who were in Washington, DC, for an anti-abortion rally, began the school spirit chants with the permission of chaperones.
The New York Times reports that in another online video, the African-American protesters, members of the Black Hebrew Israelites, can be heard shouting insults at both the Native Americans and the Kentucky students.
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According to later reports the trouble makers were a group of Blacks who started protesting with some pretty foul language. The Native American was trying to break the tension between the students and the protesters. The kid was being a smartass by standing in the face of the Native American. Had he wanted to confront the real problem he would have confronted the protesters, but there would have been real violence then.
I was extremely angry upon hearing the initial reports, but apparently there is new video and I will reserve judgement. I remain skeptical – and by skeptical I mean pissed off at all the activists with axes to grind.
There are all sorts of people grinding their axes over this. That fact this kid doesn’t particularly have a kind face doesn’t help him. In point of fact, he is, ironically, hatchet-faced.