Video of a teenager mocking a Native American elder participating in the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington D.C. went viral on Saturday, drawing condemnation from a number of Hollywood stars and celebrities. “I want the opposite of whatever these kids want. And it appears they want a wall,” wrote “Scrubs” star Zach Braff on Twitter. Videos from Friday’s rally showed students of the all-boys Covington Catholic High School shouting, jumping and chanting “build the wall” at Native American marchers playing traditional music. According to the school, the students were in D.C. to attend the anti-abortion March for Life rally, taking place on the same day. Also Read: Michael Cohen Hired Tech Consultant to Rig Online Drudge, CNBC Polls for Trump (Report) One video, showing a young man in a “Make America Great Again” hat staring down a Native American man, drew particular attention. The Native American man was later identified as Omaha Nation elder and Vietnam War veteran Nathan Phillips. “This is Trump’s America,” wrote actress and activist Alyssa Milano. “And it brought me to tears. What are we teaching our young people? Why is this ok? How is this ok? Please help me understand. Because right now I feel like my heart is living outside of my body.” Also Read: Trump Rips 'Amazon Washington Post' Over Shutdown Criticism In a statement on Saturday, the school condemned the actions of the student in the video and vowed to investigate and “take appropriate action, up to and including expulsion.” “We extend our deepest apologies to Mr. Phillips. This behavior is opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person,” the statement continued. Phillips himself addressed what happened in another video circulated on Saturday. “I heard them saying, ‘build that wall! build that wall! '” he said. “This is indigenous land — not supposed to have walls here. We never [did] for millennium … Before anybody else came here, you never had walls, you never had a prison,” he also said. “We always too care of our elders. We took care of our children.” Also Read: Jimmy Kimmel Prescribes 'Wallegra' for Trump's Apparent Allergy Problem (Video) This is the Vietnam vet the kids from @CovCathColonels were mocking. Chanting “BUILD THAT WALL” to a Native American. This clip is VERY hard to watch, fair warning. https://t.co/V3PW937LCz — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) January 19, 2019<doc-sep>A mural of George Floyd is shown in the intersection of 38th St & Chicago Ave on March 31, 2021 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Community members continue preparations during the third day in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with multiple counts of murder in the death of George Floyd. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 01: President Donald Trump's lawyer and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani talks to journalists outside the White House West Wing July 01, 2020 in Washington, DC. Giuliani did an on-camera interview with One America News Network's Chanel Rion before talking to other journalists about Vice President Joe Biden and the news that Russian intelligence may have paid Taliban operatives to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) ORLANDO, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 28: Former President Donald Trump addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference held in the Hyatt Regency on February 28, 2021 in Orlando, Florida. Begun in 1974, CPAC brings together conservative organizations, activists, and world leaders to discuss issues important to them. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 09: People walk past the Trump Tower as the impeachment trial of Donald Trump begins in Washington on February 09, 2021 in New York City. After listening to nearly four hours of legal arguments, the Senate has voted on Tuesday to move ahead with the impeachment trial of former President Trump. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 20: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the conflict in the Middle East from Cross- Hall of the White House on May 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. Israel and Hamas announced that they would agree to a cease-fire, which will take into effect on Friday, following days of fighting that claimed more than 200 lives. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) SAN JOSE, CA - MAY 26: A view of the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) light-rail yard where a mass shooting occurred on May 26, 2021 in San Jose, California. A VTA employee opened fire at the yard, with preliminary reports indicating nine people dead including the gunman. (Photo by Philip Pacheco/Getty Images) A healthcare worker prepares to administer a Pfizer/BioNTEch coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine at The Michener Institute, in Toronto, Ontario on December 14, 2020. - Ontario, Canada's most populous province and one of the hardest hit by the pandemic, had 1,940 new cases and 23 deaths on Monday. The province is expected to give its next doses to nursing home workers as a priority, according to media reports. (Photo by CARLOS OSORIO / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS OSORIO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) Memorial Day weekend will bring rain and cool air for much of the East Kaya Taitano was at Friday's Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, DC, and filmed this confrontation between a teen in a Make America Great Again hat who stood directly in front of a Native American elder, who chanting and beating a drum. Other teens were taunting him and shooting video in the distance. The elder was identified as Nathan Phillips of the Omaha Tribe. He's a Vietnam veteran. title: KC🇬🇬🇺🇬🇺🌴🇬🇺🌴🌴 on Instagram: "The amount of disrespect.... TO THIS DAY. #SMH #ipmdc19 #ipmdc #indigenousunited #indigenouspeoplesmarch #indigenouspeoplesmarch2019" duration: 00:00:00 site: Instagram author: null published: Wed Dec 31 1969 19:00:00 GMT-0500 (Eastern Standard Time) intervention: no description: null Correction: This article has been updated to remove wording that Phillips is a Vietnam veteran. He did serve in the military during the Vietnam War, but according to his service records, he was not deployed to Vietnam. Editor’s Note: This article and headline have been updated several times since its first publication to add additional reporting regarding witness accounts, statements and other details. (CNN) — A crowd of teenagers surrounded a Native American elder and other activists and appeared to mock them after Friday’s Indigenous Peoples March at the Lincoln Memorial. Videos of the confrontation show a smiling young man in a red Make America Great Again hat standing directly in front of the man, who was playing a drum and chanting. Other kids could be seen laughing, jumping around and seemingly making fun of the chants. Nathan Phillips, an elder with the Omaha tribe, said the confrontation felt like “hate unbridled.” In the moment, he said he was scared for his safety and the safety of those with him. The behavior of the students from Covington Catholic High School – an all-boys’ school in Northern Kentucky – triggered widespread condemnation from lawmakers and celebrities as well as the school district, the mayor of the neighboring town and Covington’s Roman Catholic Diocese. CNN’s Jake Tapper obtained a statement on Sunday from Nick Sandmann, a junior at Covington Catholic High School, who said he is the student in the video. Sandmann said he was trying to defuse a tense situation and denied insinuations that anyone in the crowd was acting out of racism or hatred. “I was not intentionally making faces at the protester. I did smile at one point because I wanted him to know that I was not going to become angry, intimidated or be provoked into a larger confrontation. I am a faithful Christian and practicing Catholic, and I always try to live up to the ideals my faith teaches me – to remain respectful of others, and to take no action that would lead to conflict or violence.” He cautioned against rushing to judgment based on the short time captured on the videos and encouraged people to watch longer clips available online, “as they show a much different story than is being portrayed by people with agendas,” he said. “I am mortified that so many people have come to believe something that did not happen – that students from my school were chanting or acting in a racist fashion toward African-Americans or Native Americans. I did not do that, do not have hateful feelings in my heart, and did not witness any of my classmates doing that.” The person who shot the videos described the atmosphere as tense.<doc-sep>F ootage of teenagers wearing Make America Great Again hats appearing to mock a Native American Vietnam War veteran has sparked outrage. A viral video of the group of mostly boys has attracted criticism on social media, with many condemning their actions. In the video, students from Kentucky’s Covington Catholic High School are seen to be taunting Omaha elder Nathan Philips as he sings and drums. One youth in the video appears to be standing extremely close to the 64-year-old Vietnam war veteran’s face, while other pupils are seen chanting, laughing and cheering. The teens were taking place in an anti-abortion rally in Washington and met Mr Philips, who was taking part in an Indigenous Peoples March, on Friday. The video has prompted outrage / REUTERS According to the school’s diocese, the pupils could face expulsion as a result. In a joint statement , the Roman Catholic Diocese of Covington and Covington Catholic High School apologised and said they are investigating and will take "appropriate action, up to and including expulsion." The statement read: “We extend our deepest apologies to Mr Philips. “This behaviour is opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person.” According to the Indian Country Today website, Mr Phillips is an Omaha elder and Vietnam veteran who holds an annual ceremony honouring Native American veterans at Arlington National Cemetery. The school has apologised after videos emerged / AP Marcus Frejo, a member of the Pawnee and Seminole tribes who is also known as Chief Quese Imc, said he had been a part of the march and was among a small group of people remaining after the rally when the boisterous students began chanting slogans such as "make America great" and then began doing the haka, a traditional Maori dance. Mr Frejo later said he felt as though the pupils were mocking the dance. One 11-minute video of the confrontation shows the Haka dance and students loudly chanting before Mr Phillips and Mr Frejo approached them. Mr Frejo said he joined Mr Phillips to defuse the situation, singing the anthem from the American Indian Movement with both men beating out the tempo on hand drums. He said: "They went from mocking us and laughing at us to singing with us. I heard it three times,". The videos prompted a torrent of outrage online. Actress and activist Alyssa Milano tweeted that the footage "brought me to tears," while actor Chris Evans tweeted that the students' actions were "appalling" and "shameful."<doc-sep>The images were shocking to many across the internet -- a group of MAGA-hat wearing teenagers surrounding Native American Nathan Phillips, taunting him as he played a traditional song and banged a drum. Now, the internet has responded by raising thousands of dollars to support Phillips and a non-profit organization he leads called Native Youth Alliance. The response was meant to put a positive spin on an ugly incident that has gained viral attention and to help the Native American activist, who was caught in the middle of the incident. Though the details were not all clear, reports indicated that the group of students from the private Covington Catholic High School got into a verbal tiff with a group of African-American protesters. Phillips and his group, who were attending the Indigenous People's March at the same time the high school students were at the March for Life, then moved in to diffuse the situation, but ended up becoming a target of the students instead. While the incident drew some very strong emotions, some tried to funnel their energy toward helping Phillips and the work he has done to promote peace and help develop Native American Youth. Across Twitter, many shared links to the organization and encouraged others to give. The attention has apparently been appreciated by Phillips and his family. One commenter on social media said they contacted Nathan's daughter following the incident and asked what they could do to help. She shared a link to the Native Youth Alliance and asked that anyone motivated by the incident consider making a donation. Even some other Native American charities are pitching in to help. The Native Youth Leadership Alliance -- a similar-sounding, but different organization -- released a statement condemning the incident and sharing a PayPal link to nativeyouthalliance@gmail.com. The organization noted that any contributions it might receive by mistake due to the similar name will be forwarded to the Native Youth Alliance instead. Nathan Phillips has been a longtime peace activist, teaming up with his daughter last year to lead a four-day prayer walk in protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline. He also has a number of videos and articles promoting the power of prayer -- which some noted made the confrontation even more tragic given that it was students from a Catholic high school who confronted and taunted him. Others have started fundraisers in Nathan Phillips' name, including one that has already raised more than $6,000 for the American Indian College Fund.<doc-sep>
A Kentucky high school student spoke out on Sunday after video appeared to show him taunting a group of Native American protesters in Washington, D.C., over the weekend. Nick Sandmann, a junior at Covington Catholic High School in Park Hills, Kentucky, was accused of taunting and mocking a Native American protester at the end of the Indigenous People's March on Friday, but the teenager said he'd been falsely accused. "The protestor everyone has seen in the video began playing his drum as he waded into the crowd, which parted for him," Sandmann said in a statement on Sunday. "He locked eyes with me and approached me, coming within inches of my face. He played his drum the entire time he was in my face. "I never interacted with this protestor. I did not speak to him. I did not make any hand gestures or other aggressive moves. To be honest, I was startled and confused as to why he had approached me," he added. The protestor, Vietnam veteran Nathan Phillips, who was banging a drum and singing when he confronted Sandmann, said the teens yelled derogatory comments at him before the stare down took place. "I heard them say, 'Build that wall, build that wall,' you know?" Phillips told reporters over the weekend. "This is indigenous lands, you know. We’re not supposed to have walls here. We never did. Before anybody else came here we never had walls. We never had a prison." In a separate interview with the Washington Post, Phillips said teens from Sandmann's group had harassed him and other Native American protesters before the encounter. "It was getting ugly," he said, describing his confrontation with Sandmann, who was wearing a red "Make America Great Again" hat at the time. “I started going that way, and that guy in the hat stood in my way and we were at an impasse. He just blocked my way and wouldn’t allow me to retreat.” Sandmann disputed those claims in his statement on Sunday and said he never heard "any students chant 'build that wall' or anything hateful or racist at any time." "The protestor everyone has seen in the video began playing his drum as he waded into the crowd, which parted for him," Sandmann said. "I did not see anyone try to block his path. He locked eyes with me and approached me, coming within inches of my face. He played his drum the entire time he was in my face." "I believed that by remaining motionless and calm, I was helping to diffuse the situation," he added. Sandmann said he and his family have received threats after the incident became public. "I have received physical and death threats via social media, as well as hateful insults. One person threatened to harm me at school, and one person claims to live in my neighborhood. My parents are receiving death and professional threats because of the social media mob that has formed over this issue," Sandmann said in the statement. The Diocese of Covington and the Covington Catholic School issued a joint statement over the weekend as video of the encounter sparked outrage online. “We condemn the actions of the Covington Catholic High School students towards Nathan Phillips specifically, and Native Americans in general," the statement said. "We extend our deepest apologies to Mr. Phillips. "This behavior is opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person. The matter is being investigated and we will take appropriate action, up to and including expulsion,” it added. Sandmann defended his actions in the statement and said he planned to cooperate with the school's ongoing investigation. "I realized everyone had cameras and that perhaps a group of adults was trying to provoke a group of teenagers into a larger conflict," Sandmann said. "I said a silent prayer that the situation would not get out of hand." "I was not intentionally making faces at the protestor. I did smile at one point because I wanted him to know that I was not going to become angry, intimidated or be provoked into a larger confrontation," he added.