A screen capture of the video that was uploaded to Instagram on Wednesday.
UPDATE: May 6, 3:40 p.m. - Investigators from the Towamencin Township Police Department have released additional details from Tuesday's incident, and they are urging the public to remain patience as they continue to conduct their investigation.
The Towamencin Township Police Department is actively investigating a fight that occurred inside the cafeteria of the North Penn High School at noon on Tuesday, May 4, 2021. Three juvenile females, all students at North Penn High School, participated in the fight, which lasted for approximately 32 seconds. School security personnel intervened and stopped the fight prior to police officers arriving on scene at the high school. One of the school security officers suffered a minor injury while breaking up the fight. All three of the student participants in the fight advised responding officers that they were not injured.
Two of the juvenile females involved in the fight were white, and the third juvenile female involved in the fight was black. There have been allegations made by a parent of one of the juveniles that the fight was a “hate crime” because it involved “a Black Muslim girl being jumped by two white girls.” These allegations were made via a social media post on the NoGunZone Instagram page. The post also included a video clip, recorded by the cell phone of another student who was in the cafeteria at the time of the fight. The video on the Instagram post was approximately 19 seconds in duration.
This incident is currently under investigation, and the North Penn School District is fully cooperating with the police department. The school district has provided the full video surveillance footage of the fight to the police department, and it is under review as part of the investigation. Investigators are still in the process of identifying witnesses, conducting interviews and gathering background information. No criminal charges have been filed at this time. If criminal charges are to be filed, it will only occur after the investigation has been completed and following consultation between investigators and the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office.
While we understand the sensitive nature of the allegations made in regard to this incident and the public’s desire for a resolution, we encourage all members of the community to remain patient while we conduct the investigation. We are working as quickly as possible, but we also have an obligation to ensure that a complete and thorough investigation occurs. Speculation does not serve anyone’s best interest in cases such as this, and we respectfully ask that all members of the community join us in not doing so. We will not put out any information until it is confirmed as being accurate and factual, and we will continue to post updates on the investigation as it progresses. These updates will be in the form of press releases distributed through our Facebook page and media outlets.
The North Penn School District continues to investigate the altercation involving three students at North Penn High School on Tuesday, May 4th, and is aware of cellphone videos of part of the incident circulating throughout social media. We take seriously the comments, reactions and feelings that are being represented by those on social media and others reaching out to the school district and school.Since the altercation on Tuesday, NPSD officials have been in multiple conversations with the families involved, a representative from the NAACP, North Penn Mosque and law enforcement. It is important that we work together during this difficult time and share with the community our steps to resolve the difficult issues at hand. We also must respect the privacy rights of the students involved. The District Administration has also apprised the Board of School Directors that an incident occurred at NPHS. Because the School Board may be required to act as an impartial hearing body in light of the potential for student disciplinary proceedings, the Board and its members are legally unable to comment on this matter out of concern for the due process rights of all students who may have been involved.Although our investigation is not yet complete, it is apparent we could have done a better job in helping the student retrieve her hijab and support her during the situation. For this, the North Penn School District sincerely apologizes and resolves to move forward in a manner in which this is not repeated. Each year we dedicate many hours to help our staff and students grow in cultural proficiency, but we know we have much more work to do in this extremely important area.
Our first step in healing will be to provide an opportunity on Friday, May 7th, for NPHS students to discuss their thoughts regarding race, culture, religion, and relationships among students in a safe and open manner with school and district administration. Opportunities for tomorrow’s discussions will be provided during periods four through seven at the high school. After that, next steps will involve conversations with North Penn families and the broader community. Please know that specifics regarding the recent incident will not be discussed due to privacy laws.
The video was uploaded to Instagram on Wednesday afternoon by No Gun Zone Philly — an advocacy group seeking to raise awareness to issues of gun violence and racial injustice. The group said the video was submitted by the mother of the Black female student, who stated that her daughter was attacked on Tuesday afternoon in the cafeteria by two students who had been harassing her prior to the incident.
In the video, which starts after the incident already began, viewers can see district staffers working to break up the fight and separate the three teens. The video can be seen below:
The message accompanying the video reads as follows:
My daughter is a junior at North Penn High school in Montgomery County Lansdale PA. She is black Muslim young lady who was attacked and jumped today by 2 Caucasian young lady’s that have been sending her threatening messages through snap chat (stating they wanted to BEAT her up )....today she was jumped and the young lady’s said WE FINALLY GOT YOU NOW and then pulled her HIJAB OFF HER head once they were separated my daughter was NEVER OFFERED ANY COVERAGE ANNND SHE HAD TO WALK THROUGH A LARGE LUNCHROOM WITH NO COVERAGE TO SHIELD HER FROM ANY MALE EYES. The part that makes me sick to my stomach and broke my heart as a parent was when my baby said to me "Mommy I really was so upset and disrespected it was like I was NAKED walking in FRONT of EVERYONE” sit on different boards for her school. She is known and loved by many she is the student ambassador for Cultural Proficiency and Equity she also is in the Protective Service program she is a HELPER not a FIGHTER
The biggest problem with the
school district I am having is they said my daughter although she was defending
herself she was still wrong bcuz she took her backpack annnd she has to serve a
suspension PLEASE MAKE IT SENSE
The part that NO ONE IS EVEN SAYING IS THAT THIS WAS A HATE CRIME because it
was a black Muslim girl jumped by 2 white girls and NOBODY IS TAKING IT SERIOUS
that she was attacked during our holy month of Ramadan and if the roles were in
reverse it would be some charge against my daughter for being the aggressor
THE Towamencin police department said that in order for my daughter to not have
charges against her she has to go to a class for discipline but she won’t have
a record. Now I am the parent that is ALL for if u did the crime but was
defending herself period. I DO NOT FEEL LIKE MY DAUGHTER IS SAFE IN HER SCHOOL
IF SOMETHING IS NOT DONE ABOUT THIS oooooo annnd a child pulled OFF her
HIJAB/headscarf in middle school and that was not a HATE CRIME EITHER
My daughter and other ppl made several reports to the school (Editor’s note:
this message has been posted verbatim, and has not been edited in order to
preserve the original post.)
By 5 p.m. Wednesday, the video had been viewed more than 70,000 times on the initial post. It had also been shared across numerous other accounts on Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and TikTok — the speed and reach of which prompted the school district to release the following statement:
The North Penn School District
is committed to ensuring a safe and equitable learning experience for all
students, while developing a respect for diversity and appreciation of human
differences. Any student behaviors that do not abide by these principles will
not be tolerated.
We take all matters of student wellbeing seriously and have processes and
programs in place to ensure a safe school environment. Any altercation taking
place in our schools is investigated and individuals involved are assigned
consequences in accordance with Board policies and our student code of conduct.
The recent incident at North Penn High School is under an ongoing
investigation. As always, we cannot comment on individual student situations.
North Penn School District Director of School and Community Engagement Christine Liberaski declined to answer questions from North Penn Now, instead pointing us to the district’s statement due to the ongoing nature of the investigation. Additionally, efforts to reach the mother of the Black female student have been unsuccessful, and we are unable to identify the other students involved in the incident.
Around the same time that the school district issued their statement, Shaykh Anwar Muhammad, president of the Ambler Chapter of the NAACP, released the following official statement via his Facebook page:
Yesterday, Tuesday May 4 at approximately 12:30 p.m., we were reminded yet again how hate — which is not supposed to reside here in our community — not only does but reared its ugly head yet again. Enough is enough!
A lot of rhetoric during this school board election cycle [has been] about promises being delivered. In particular, "advanced equity and inclusion across the district” and "enhanced school safety with a proactive and evidence-based strategy.”
Yet, when a Black young Muslim teenager is attacked by two white female students in the North Penn High School cafeteria — her hijab pulled off, racial and Islamaphobic slurs hurled at her, along with fists — nothing happens. No arrests or statements made by the school. Immediate accountability and justice for this hate crime is the only answer.
Silence is complicity in our fight against racism and hatred. Lines have clearly been drawn. This is right versus wrong. The Ambler Branch of the NAACP is refusing to tolerate hate. We don’t need allies in rhetoric, we need allies in action. Stand with us.
The statement concluded with a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, which read:
"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
When reached by North Penn Now, Shaykh Muhammad declined to further comment on the issue.
In addition to the Ambler NAACP’s statement, local activist Shaheer Johnson — who also serves as a member of the Lansdale Equality Coalition — released the following statement:
"Incidents like this shouldn't be happening in our schools. ‘Kids will be kids,’ but when it comes to hate, it can't and won't be tolerated in this community. I'm happy to say that I've been contacted by a school board member and have been assured that they will investigate this incident to the fullest. There's no room for hate in our schools. I'll be keeping a close eye on this situation as it unfolds.”
It is unclear what actions — if any — have been taken by the school district in connection with the incident. However, in the public comments from the mother, she stated that the district suspended her daughter.
In an interview with North Penn Now, Towamencin Police Chief Tim Troxel stated police are in the preliminary stage of their investigation and no charges have been filed at this time.
While the viral video of the incident was short and started only after the fight had already started, Troxel said the school cafeteria has closed-circuit surveillance footage of the entire incident, which investigators will view in the coming days. On the topic of the incident being labeled as a hate crime or racially motivated, Troxel stated that it is too early in the investigation to make any determination, adding that his investigators will review all footage of the incident as well as any social media posts that could point to or rule out a racial or discriminatory motivation for the fight.
Should investigators find evidence that the incident was racially or religiously motivated, Troxel said they would consult with the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office to determine if hate crime or other criminal charges are warranted.
See also:
North Penn High School Addresses Families After 6 Students Recently Test Positive For COVID-19
North Penn School Board Issues Statement Supporting Asian American, Pacific Islander Communities
