California high school investigating after photo shows shirtless teens with swastikas
A rural Northern California high school is investigating student social media posts, a superintendent said this week, after photos showing teenagers with swastikas drawn on their bodies began circulating online over the weekend.
Wheatland Union High School in Yuba County “is investigating multiple social media posts made by students of our school,” district superintendent Nicole Newman wrote in a statement posted to the school’s website and Facebook Monday morning.
“I want to make very clear that our district seeks to educate our students in an environment of respect for each other, for our community and humankind,” Newman’s statement continued. “The District prohibits any discrimination, harassment, intimidation or bullying of any student or staff member.”
The initial statement did not include any further details about the posts.
“Because this matter is under investigation, we cannot comment on it in a detailed way,” Newman wrote.
But in an update posted Thursday, Newman described the incident as “a recent social media post depicting students with swastikas painted on their chests.” She also said she can “confirm that the students in the picture are Wheatland Union High School students.”
“As a result of that confirmation, my team and I are in close communication with district legal counsel, as we take disciplinary action,” Newman continued in a letter sent Thursday to students, family and other stakeholders.
“The severity of the disciplinary action will be guided by the facts yielded by the investigatory process, and the legal parameters we are bound by as a district. There is no denying that, the choices made by the students in the picture were hurtful and deeply troubling. Their actions do not represent who we are as a school district and community.”
Screenshots, one of which was emailed to The Sacramento Bee, began circulating Sunday night of photos originally posted to Instagram and TikTok.
The image appears to show eight teens at a house party, posing with swastikas and “SS” logos drawn on their chests or torsos in marker.
One of the teens appears to be holding up an “OK” symbol – a hand gesture associated in recent years with white supremacist hate groups. Another has a middle finger up, and at least two are holding alcoholic beverages.
In response to an emailed inquiry from The Bee asking if the incident is being investigated under the district’s policy on “hate-motivated behavior,” Newman responded, “Absolutely.”
“Thanks for understanding that I can’t talk about it… but we are dealing with it,” her response continued, in full.
The Instagram account that allegedly first posted the photo has been deleted, and the associated TikTok account has been set to private.
Re-posts of the original image began to go viral, with captions and comments claiming the teens are Wheatland Union students. One user who shared the image tagged the school’s Instagram handle to notify administration.
In a Facebook comment, Newman wrote that the incident was brought to the school’s attention Sunday night.
The district’s prepared statement said that the school, which is about 35 miles north of Sacramento and began its two-week winter break Monday, is “committed to providing a safe learning environment that promotes academic excellence and responsible citizenship.”
This story was originally published December 20, 2021 at 2:07 PM.
