ROWLAND HEIGHTS, Calif. – A video showing two girls involved in an altercation with a boy with autism at a Rowland Heights high school Wednesday has drawn outrage online and from community members.
The distressed boy is seen surrounded by a group of girls who laugh while hitting and pulling at him on campus at Rowland High School.
In the video, he fights back, trying to push and swat them away while in tears.
“The administration handled the situation with immediate and firm disciplinary action before the end of the school day,” the school said in a statement after the video quickly spread online.
The school did not provide information on how the incident was handled, but students told KTLA the girls were suspended for five days.
“The safety of our students and staff is the highest priority at Rowland High School and throughout the Rowland Unified School District,” the statement read. “Rowland High School does not tolerate bullying and its presence on any school campus is unacceptable. As a school community we will continue to support our students in a strong anti-bullying stance and address the importance of students involving themselves to stop these types of actions from occurring.”
Online, the boy has been identified as “Korvin” and described as the “sweetest” and “kindest” person.
Twitter users posting with the hashtag #JusticeforKorvin have been calling for the school to expel the girls and some have described the incident as “disgusting,” “disturbing,” and “sickening.”