ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A group of nine Black students at a St. Louis County high school said they were the victims of online racism and cyberbullying.
St. Louis County NAACP President John Bowman said the incident happened in a group chat on Snapchat, a social media platform, during winter break for Parkway South High School.
Bowman said three white students were posting racist, homophobic and disturbing comments and images, even after others told them to stop.
"You should always be sensitive to how you impact another person's well-being and how they feel about themselves," Bowman said. "If I were the school administrator I would be doing everything in my power to come up with a solution to intervene and be sure the people who are doing these actions know it won't be tolerated."
After learning of the incident, parents took their concerns to Parkway South leaders but said the school told them there was little they could do. Parkway released this statement:
Over winter break, some of our students shared several racist images and other inappropriate messages on personal social media accounts. School administrators immediately addressed the matter directly with the students involved and their parents.
The posted images were reprehensible and hurtful. While schools generally do not have the authority to discipline students for speech that occurs on personal time and on personal devices, these postings were wrong. They are hurtful and can impact the entire school community, regardless of where or when they occur. This type of behavior is disappointing and does not represent who we are or who we aspire to be.
The NAACP and families want assurance that their children will be safe at school. Bowman said cyberbullying can escalate and even cause a student to take their own life.
"This is nothing to blow off into the wind or glaze over," Bowman said. "It needs a serious response. The parents are extremely, well livid is not a good word. They are extremely disappointed, upset and trying to come up with a solution to know that their children will be protected from this type of hatred."
Local law enforcement is investigating.