UK People Unite Against Sikh Schoolboy Reportedly Being Attacked By Classmates In 'Hate Crime'
In the video circulated broadly on social media, a young Sikh boy can seen being assaulted by two others in school uniform as he was walking back home from class.
The Sikh community in the United Kingdom since Wednesday has been rallying together on social media to express its outrage at the hate crime committed towards a young schoolboy in the community of Telford, in Shropshire.
In the video circulated broadly on social media, a young Sikh boy can seen being assaulted by two others in school uniform as he was walking back home from class. The boy was pushed, pinned to the ground and his turban was pulled off while other students around him could be heard laughing in the video as he was repeatedly punched on the back of his head.
Here's a full video as posted by Daily Mail:
The assault is believed to have taken place on Friday, November 13 as pupils walked home from Charlton School. However, the incident reportedly came to light only when the video surfaced on Twitter on Wednesday.
What the school said
Charlton School said in a statement that it takes ¡°full responsibility¡± for working with the students involved and is ¡°working closely¡± with the local Sikh community and its leaders in the wake of the attack.
The incident, initially described as an ¡°incident of bullying¡±, was later registered as a ¡°hate crime¡± by local police. West Mercia Police have confirmed that the incident was being treated ¡°as a hate crime and with the utmost seriousness¡±.
West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner John-Paul Campion released a statement on social media saying he had been reassured by the quick response of the police force.
What the police said
A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said it was ¡°clearly an incredibly distressing incident.¡± Supt Jim Baker said that the boys involved have been ¡°identified¡± and that ¡°enquiries are continuing."
We¡¯re aware of a video circulating on social media of a boy being attacked by two other boys. This is clearly an incredibly distressing incident. We are treating this as a hate crime and with the utmost seriousness. pic.twitter.com/pVcyAjIyqK
¡ª West Mercia Police (@WMerciaPolice) November 25, 2020
He added that the police¡¯s youth offending team and the school will be working together to ensure ¡°suitable action¡± is taken, saying that the police are ¡°working with our local communities to provide reassurance.¡±
What Sikh community said
The National Sikh Police Association in the UK have called the attack ¡°absolutely disgusting.¡± It tweeted: ¡°We trust West Mercia Police and the school involved to handle this matter with the sensitivity it needs.¡± It also advised the Sikh community to ¡°avoid contacting the school directly about this matter.¡±
Only last week, we were raising awareness for #AntiBullyingWeek There is so much more room for improvement. https://t.co/q8x7jJi0xB pic.twitter.com/V8kXojCB4p
¡ª Sikh Council UK (@SCUKofficial) November 25, 2020
Slough¡¯s Labour MP, Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, said on Twitter that "Bullying and anti-Sikh hate cannot be tolerated." He also said that he was was saddened to see such behaviour.
Saddened to see such vile behaviour towards a young boy. Brings back memories of when someone tried to pull off my turban at school.
¡ª Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi MP (@TanDhesi) November 26, 2020
Bullying and anti-Sikh hate can¡¯t be tolerated. Looking to Charton School and authorities in Telford to take swift action.https://t.co/QTvW9Ej6wW
It remains unclear how old the boy is and the grade that he studies in.