Beyond Sound Bites, Stereotypes, and Blame-Placing: A Historical Analysis of the Interethnic Violence at South Philadelphia High School

―Asian students say black students routinely pelt them with food, beat, punch and kick them in school hallways and bathrooms, and hurl racial epithets….‖1 This quote from the January 22, 2010, edition of USA Today describes Asian students’ account of their experience with violence and harassment at the hands of a group of predominantly African-American students at South Philadelphia High School. Various media outlets reported that a group of primarily African-American students attacked approximately 30 Asian students in the high school lunchroom. Subsequently, Asian students boycotted the school for more than a week and returned to school on December 16, 2009. Shortly thereafter, the School Reform Commission began hearings to investigate the series of events and hear the Asian students’ testimonies.