Colorado high school student wearing Nazi uniform beaten by black classmate

A previously unreported video of a black high school student in Colorado punching a white student known among his classmates for wearing Nazi uniform has surfaced.

The video footage of the incident, which took place in August, was filmed at Mountain Vista High School in Highlands Ranch.

The footage shows the black student walking towards the white student before apparently hitting him in the face and sending him tumbling to the ground. Then, a few seconds later, the white student is shown throwing a landscaping rock at the black student but missing.

The physical encounter began when the white student, who appears to be wearing a military green jacket, made a T-pose, a popular gaming meme, but a posture “some people say has been used by the KKK to represent a burning cross,” a Douglas County Sherriff’s Office spokeswoman said Lt. Lori Bronner.

The black student then confronted the other student and dared him to pose again. The students were walking alongside each other in the school courtyard when the black student threw his punch. The fight between the two escalated. The black student chased and beat down the white student, who then apparently used a racial slur. Soon after, the school security guards arrived at the scene and broke up the fight.

Lt. Bronner said both students were arrested and charged with crimes. The black student was charged with assault, harassment, and disorderly conduct. The white student was charged with harassment, disorderly conduct and criminal attempt assault. He was not charged with a hate crime.

The school said the white student did not sport any Nazi paraphernalia on his military green jacket. However, students said he was known for wearing Nazi regalia with that green jacket. The student’s Instagram account also features multiple photos of him wearing Nazi garb.

Douglas County School District Paula Hans said the principal notified the parents of the physical encounter. “Principal Michael Weaver told the parents that there was an altercation between two students,” Ms Hans said. “The administration worked with the students and families directly involved as well as the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.”

It is unclear if either student were suspended or expelled.

Mountain Vista High School has seen another racist incident a few months ago. In September, an anti-black derogatory slogan, featuring the slur “N*****,” was spray-painted on the school school’s gym wall. The school’s football coaches, who are African-American, believe the racist graffiti was directed at them.

The Colorado Anti-Defamation League (ADL) report that racist incidents at school are increasing. “Incidents are up,” Colorado ADL associate regional director Jeremy Shaver told the Denver Post. “As we’ve seen an increase of incidents in Colorado since 2015, the percentage in schools has also increased.”

Earlier this month, a photo surfaced of Wisconsin high school students giving the Nazi salute for their junior prom photographs. The school decided not to punish the students, citing their right to free speech.