Edinburgh pupils charged after racist behaviour in classroom is caught on camera

During a video seen by the Evening News a boy is asking the person holding the camera to film a black girl as he says “n****r” repeatedly in the background.

Two boys have been charged after a video showing shocking racist behaviour was circulated among pupils and parents.

The clip shows a teenager sitting in a classroom at a high school in south-west Edinburgh racially abusing one of his peers.

During the video, seen by Edinburgh Evening News, the boy is asking the person holding the camera to film a black girl as he says “n****r” repeatedly in the background.

Two boys, aged 14 and 15, have since been charged in connection

Two boys, aged 14 and 15, have since been charged in connection with the incident and reported to the Youth Justice Assessor.

The video was shown amid a parent’s complaints about racism in the school last month.

Catherine Ross, whose daughter goes to the school, spoke to Edinburgh Evening News about a particular pupil whose racist behaviour was having a significant impact on other children’s mental health.

She said the boy in question had been called out by parents and other pupils on several occasions for his disturbing behaviour which involved bringing knives into the school grounds and threatening to rape and stab her daughter.

The racist behaviour lead Ms Ross to launch a petition on August 18 to put an end to racism at the school. It has now reached more than 1500 signatures.

A police spokesman said: “Two boys aged 14 and 15 were charged in connection with the matter and will be reported to the Youth Justice Assessor.”

At the time the video was released, a City of Edinburgh Council spokesman said: “We treat allegations of racism very seriously in our schools and are committed to improving the lives of all young people.

"We need city and council wide action to tackle racism and it’s important we strengthen our commitment to tackling the issue by supporting pupils and colleagues through strong anti-racist leadership and teaching in our schools.

"This is about a change of culture and systems. The school does not tolerate racist behaviour, will take action to ensure the safety of young people and continue to deal with any incidents seriously.”

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