Rachel Evans
On January 18, 2019, a confrontation occurred between students from Covington Catholic High School and Native American protesters at the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. Videos of the incident sparked widespread controversy, with initial media reports portraying the Catholic students as aggressors. However, longer videos revealed interactions between the students and a third group, the Black Hebrew Israelites, who made racist comments towards both the students and the Native American protesters. The incident has been characterized as a convergence of race, religion, and ideological beliefs and has prompted discussions about media representation and the complexities of interpreting such events.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Black Hebrew Israelites |
| Type of group | A group of five adults |
| Interaction with Covington Catholic | Taunted the students and called them "crackers" |
| Interaction with Native Americans | Called them "Uncle Tomahawks" and "$5 Indians" |
| Other details | The organization is considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center |
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What You'll Learn
- The Covington Catholic students were initially taunted by the Black Hebrew Israelites
- The Black Hebrew Israelites called the Native Americans Uncle Tomahawks and $5 Indians
- The Black Hebrew Israelites also shouted insults at the Covington Catholic students
- The Covington Catholic students performed the tomahawk chop to the beat of Nathan Phillips' drumming
- The students were exonerated and the Diocese of Covington apologised to Nick Sandmann
The Covington Catholic students were initially taunted by the Black Hebrew Israelites
On January 18, 2019, two separate marches were held on the Plaza of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Indigenous Peoples March, which aimed to raise awareness of indigenous people's issues, and the March for Life, which aimed to raise awareness of anti-abortion issues. A group of Covington Catholic High School students, aged 15 and 16, were present at the March for Life. They were waiting for their buses at their appointed meeting place when they encountered a group of five Black Hebrew Israelites. The Black Hebrew Israelites were "shouting scripture from red books" and taunting passersby, including the Covington Catholic students.
The Black Hebrew Israelites are considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which studies extremism in the United States. Videos from the incident show members of the group taunting the Native Americans at the Indigenous Peoples March, calling them "Uncle Tomahawks" and "$5 Indians." They also directed insults at the Covington Catholic students, calling them "crackers" and worse. One member of the group was reported to have spat in the direction of the Catholic students.
In response to the taunts, some of the Covington Catholic students began to perform the "`tomahawk chop", a gesture considered offensive and derogatory by some indigenous people. The students also did a Haka, a traditional war dance of New Zealand's indigenous Maori culture. However, there were conflicting reports about whether the students were mocking the dance or simply performing it.
The incident sparked widespread outrage and condemnation, with many people believing that the Covington Catholic students had acted as the aggressors. The students and their school received death threats, and the school was temporarily closed due to safety concerns. However, others came to the defense of the students, arguing that they had been provoked by the Black Hebrew Israelites and that the media had misrepresented the incident. An investigation by the Diocese of Covington found that the students had not instigated the incident and had not made any offensive or racist statements.
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The Black Hebrew Israelites called the Native Americans Uncle Tomahawks and $5 Indians
On January 18, 2019, two separate marches were held on the Plaza of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Indigenous Peoples March, which aimed to raise awareness of indigenous people's issues, and the March for Life, which focused on anti-abortion issues. The marches coincided with the annual gathering of students from Covington Catholic High School in Park Hills, Kentucky, who were there to participate in the March for Life.
During the marches, a group of Covington Catholic students encountered Native American protester Nathan Phillips, a 64-year-old Native American man singing and playing a drum. Videos of the incident show a youth staring at and standing very close to Phillips, while other students, some wearing Covington clothing and "`Make America Great Again` hats", surrounded them, chanting, laughing, and jeering.
It was later revealed that a third group, the Black Hebrew Israelites, was also present and interacting with both the Covington Catholic students and the Native American protesters. The Black Hebrew Israelites were described as shouting scripture and taunting the students and Native Americans with racist and derogatory remarks. They called the Native Americans "Uncle Tomahawks" and "$5 Indians" and made references to totem pole worship.
The presence of the Black Hebrew Israelites added a layer of complexity to the incident, as they were accused of provoking and inciting tension between the Covington Catholic students and the Native American protesters. The investigation into the incident found no evidence that Covington Catholic students made offensive or racist statements towards Native Americans or the Black Hebrew Israelites. However, it was acknowledged that some students performed the "`tomahawk chop,"' which has been criticised by indigenous leaders as racist and derogatory.
The incident sparked widespread outrage and debate, with some accusing the media of misrepresenting the events and others reflecting on the convergence of race, religion, and ideological beliefs in the United States.
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The Black Hebrew Israelites also shouted insults at the Covington Catholic students
On January 18, 2019, two separate marches were held on the Plaza of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Indigenous Peoples March, which aimed to raise awareness of indigenous people's issues, and the March for Life, which focused on anti-abortion issues. The marches overlapped for about ten minutes, with a small group from the Indigenous Peoples March and a larger group of students from Covington Catholic High School gathering at their appointed meeting place.
Before the students arrived, a group of five Black Hebrew Israelites stood in a row, shouting scripture and taunting passersby. As the students began to arrive, the Black Hebrew Israelites started to taunt them. The Black Hebrew Israelites are considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which studies extremism in the United States. They were reported to have made racist comments towards the Covington Catholic students, calling them "crackers" and worse. One member of the group was also reported to have spat in the direction of the Catholic students.
The Covington Catholic students were also filmed performing the "`tomahawk chop`" to the beat of Nathan Phillips' drumming. Phillips, a Native American elder of the Omaha tribe, and Marcus Frejo, a member of the Pawnee and Seminole tribes, said they felt the students were mocking the dance. However, the Diocese of Covington's investigation of the incident found that the students did not instigate it and made no offensive or racist statements.
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The Covington Catholic students performed the tomahawk chop to the beat of Nathan Phillips' drumming
On January 18, 2019, a confrontation between groups of political demonstrators occurred near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The incident involved Covington Catholic High School students, Native American protesters, and a group called the Black Hebrew Israelites.
The Black Hebrew Israelites were reportedly acting provocatively, taunting passersby and shouting scripture from books. They directed racist slurs at the Native Americans, calling them "Uncle Tomahawks" and "$5 Indians". They also targeted the Covington Catholic students, referring to them as "crackers".
The Covington Catholic students were in Washington, D.C. for the annual March for Life, an anti-abortion rally. They were waiting for their buses at the Lincoln Memorial when they encountered the Black Hebrew Israelites. A video shows a Covington Catholic student, Nick Sandmann, wearing a "`Make America Great Again` hat" and standing face-to-face with Omaha tribe elder Nathan Phillips. Phillips, a Native American veteran of the Vietnam War, was at the Lincoln Memorial for the Indigenous Peoples March, raising awareness of indigenous people's issues.
In the video, Sandmann appears to smirk while Phillips plays a drum and chants, surrounded by a group of Covington Catholic students. The students jump, clap, and chant to the beat of Phillips' drumming, and some perform the "tomahawk chop". The tomahawk chop has been criticised as a racist gesture tied to the use of racist imagery in sports team mascots.
The incident sparked widespread outrage, with many interpreting the Covington Catholic students' behaviour as disrespectful and aggressive. However, others argued that the students were provoked by the Black Hebrew Israelites and that the media misrepresented the incident by omitting crucial context. The Diocese of Covington initially condemned the students' behaviour and apologised to Phillips, but later apologised to Sandmann, stating that they had been "bullied and pressured" into making a premature statement. An investigation by the Diocese concluded that the students had not instigated the incident and had not made any offensive or racist statements.
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The students were exonerated and the Diocese of Covington apologised to Nick Sandmann
On January 18, 2019, a confrontation occurred between students from Covington Catholic High School and Native American protesters at the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. The incident, which took place at the Lincoln Memorial, was captured in photos and videos that quickly went viral, sparking outrage and accusations that the Catholic students were acting as aggressors.
In the footage, a Covington Catholic student, Nick Sandmann, was seen in a face-to-face encounter with Omaha elder Nathan Phillips. Sandmann wore a "Make America Great Again" hat and appeared to smirk while Phillips played a traditional chant on a drum. The initial media reports, however, were incomplete, and longer videos from different angles provided additional context.
It was revealed that a third group, the Black Hebrew Israelites, was also present and had made racist and provocative comments toward both the students and the Native American protesters. Phillips, a Native American veteran, intervened to defuse the tension between the students and the Black Hebrew Israelites.
Following the incident, the Diocese of Covington and Covington Catholic High School issued a joint statement apologizing to Phillips and condemning the students' behaviour. However, they later retracted their statement and apologized to Sandmann, acknowledging that they had acted prematurely.
An investigation by the Diocese of Covington and Greater Cincinnati Investigation Inc. found that the Covington Catholic students did not instigate the incident and made no offensive or racist statements. The investigation also acknowledged that some students performed the "'tomahawk chop' to the beat of Phillips' drumming, which some considered offensive. The students were exonerated, and the Diocese expressed its hope that they could move forward with their lives.
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Frequently asked questions
A group called the Black Hebrew Israelites.
The Black Hebrew Israelites were reportedly taunting the Covington Catholic students. Members of the group were also reported to have made harsh and hate-filled comments towards the students.
The Diocese of Covington's investigation of the incident found that the students did not "instigate the incident". However, the investigation also found that the students performed the tomahawk chop, which has been criticised as being tied to racist imagery.
