The principal at a fancypants, private prep school in Maryland has expelled a student for badly quoting “Django Unchained,” a 2012 Quentin Tarantino movie.
Before his expulsion, the student was a senior at the Bullis School in Potomac, an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C. He was on the lacrosse team.
Video of the unidentified student’s performance appeared on Twitter on April 9, reports NBC Washington.
“It’s ’cause you’re niggers,” the student says in the 10-second video. “What up, nigger? I’m gonna fuckin’ lynch your ass. You’re my fuckin’ slave. I’m gonna get my dogs to beat your ass.”
The brief video was recorded at a Saturday night party, presumably off campus. The person filming the video pans to a female at one point. She looks shocked.
WATCH:
The student’s parents characterized their son’s words as “horrible language” and noted that he had recently been studying racism during the Civil War, according to NBC Washington.
The video took off on social media and led to a protest on the sprawling, well-heeled Bullis School campus.
Bullis School principal Gerald Boarman, who calls himself “head of school,” described his own reaction to the video as “disgusted” and “disheartened,” according to The Washington Post.
“At Bullis, we have zero tolerance for discrimination, racial intolerance, violence, injustice, accusations and innuendo,” Boarman wrote in a letter to parents.
“When one individual takes it upon him/herself to express words that are demeaning to some, it affects all of us,” he also wrote, according to the Post. “We will be reinforcing that one-time comments and actions often have far-reaching consequences well beyond the immediate situation.”
Bullis student Noah Gear told the Post that students are divided about the fairness of the expulsion. Some students think it’s ridiculous to expel a student for speech outside of school a few weeks before graduation. Others, including Gear, believe the expulsion is just and right.
The father of the student in the video said his son did not realize he was being recorded.
The expelled senior provided a statement to NBC Washington.
“I deeply regret my actions and feel terrible that my actions hurt others,” he wrote. “As someone who is Jewish and whose people were persecuted and slaughtered, I would never say anything derogatory about any other races because I understand the results of hateful speech. You can ask anyone that knows me and I am confident that they’ll vouch for me and say I’m an incredibly accepting and kind person.”
Under Bullis School policy, the student may appeal for reinstatement.
It’s not clear what part of “Django Unchained” the student was attempting to quote. A full text version of the script of the movie at the Internet Movie Script Database shows nothing particularly resembling the quote.
Tarantino wrote the screenplay for “Django Unchained.” The movie about a slave who teams up with a German bounty hunter to murder scads of people features the word “nigger” some 110 times, according to The Root.
The total cost for tuition and fees at the Bullis School for high school students is $39,669 annually. This steep fee “includes lunch.” Wednesday’s lunch menu features cream of broccoli soup, grilled ham sandwiches and yellow cake.
Notable Bullis School alumni include CBS sports analyst Seth Davis, John Philips of the folk band The Mamas & the Papas and Henry Rollins, a guy who has gone around for decades claiming to be an authentic punk rocker.
Follow Eric on Twitter. Like Eric on Facebook. Send education-related story tips to erico@dailycaller.com.
