A 15-year-old Kansas high-schooler has been charged after he was filmed attacking a Black student in the hallway, calling her the n-word and punching her in the face in an attack that left her with a broken nose.
The fight happened Nov. 15 at Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village, Kansas.
Video of the incident shows sophomore Brey’anna Brown saying “Walk away. Don’t say nothing unless you’re going to come say it to my face, because I’m not going to do it with you” toward a student walking away behind her.
That teen is heard responding, “Man shut the f— up.” Several students near Brown are heard asking in shock, “Who said that?” and Brown doubles back to approach him.
The male, who appeared to be white, then turned around and said, “me” and the n-word twice.
He took off his backpack and walked aggressively toward Brown, pushed her, and the two started throwing punches, hitting each other in the face multiple times.
The assault lasted for around 20 seconds and was broken up by adults.
The male student, who NBC News is not naming as he is a minor and has not spoken out publicly, was charged Tuesday with aggravated battery. A criminal complaint stated he “knowingly cause[d] great bodily harm to another person or disfigurement of another person.”
His first court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 6. NBC News has reached out to an attorney for him.
Brown told NBC affiliate KSHB of Kansas City that she had been suspended from school.
“I feel like outside of myself for doing what I did,” Brown said. “I’m upset that I got suspended.”
She said she didn’t expect the fight to happen, but in the moment, “I chose to stand up for myself.”
It’s not clear what led up to that fight and if the two students knew each other.
The Shawnee Mission School District said it was “saddened by this incident” in a statement Tuesday, but did not comment on the students involved nor their punishments.
“While we cannot share specific information about the incident or the District’s response, we do want to reassure the community that we take proactive measures to create a safe educational environment where every student feels a sense of belonging. This includes extensive work to support diversity, equity, and inclusion. Unfortunately, children make big and small mistakes every day,” the statement said.
On Monday, dozens of students at the high school participated in a walkout with signs that said “protect Black women” and “protect students of color,” KSHB reported.
Brown’s mother Linyka said she was heartbroken by what happened to her daughter.
“It really hurt my heart and made me mad,” she told the station. “It hurt my heart for my daughter because I didn’t want her to have to ever go through that.”
