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Viral school fight under investigation
The teen who threw the punch says this all came to a head after being called racial slurs over and over again.
TROY, Mich. (FOX 2) - A video of a Troy Athens student getting hit is spreading online and the teen who threw the punch says it all came to a head after being called racial slurs.
Big picture view:
The incident has now turned into a police investigation as Troy police say a report was filed by the student who was punched. For now, though, the video is spreading across the internet and punishments from Troy Schools have been doled out.
"My son, afraid of what was going to happen, swung on the young man in the video, as you can see," said father Sparkle Wilson.
Wilson’s 16-year-old son threw a punch at another student at Troy Athens High School. He was then suspended for 10 days. After that, in a twist, it was actually Sparkle who posted the video of her son, which has since gone viral.
"I posted the video because it’s easy to flip a narrative. It’s easy to make my son, or any kid that’s defending themselves, look like they’re angry or the villain without any context to the video," said Wilson.
She says there’s a history of the student who got punched hurling racial slurs at her son and that the group was waiting in the gym to jump him.
"You shouldn’t have to worry about being called the N-word or a Kool-Aid-drinking monkey," said Wilson.
Dig deeper:
A deep dive into what led up to the punch landed several of the other boys involved in trouble too, but not suspended. That punishment and a vow from the superintendent to move forward.
"What is seen in that video is not the whole context of the video. I was concerned," said Superintendent Richard Macheski. "Any type of hurtful language—racially insensitive or homophobic—is not respectful of the individuals in our school district and is absolutely not acceptable."
What's next:
Sparkle Wilson added that she doesn’t condone violence but says her son was trying to protect himself.
Again, Troy police are reviewing the investigation now.