ST. GEORGE — The three teenagers seen in blackface makeup in a viral online video taken inside the Cedar City Walmart on Halloween are “definitively” not students at any Iron County school, Cedar City and Iron County School District officials said late Wednesday.
At the same time, unfounded rumors continued to affect school switchboards both in Cedar City and at Cedar Valley High School in Utah County 234 miles to the north, which some on the internet mistakenly identified as the source of the teens in the video.
St. George News has chosen not to link or show pictures from the video, which was first released on the social media platform TikTok on Tuesday.
Officials with the Alpine School District and the Utah County Sherrif also confirmed Wednesday that no student from Cedar Valley High in Eagle Mountain, Utah – further away from Cedar City than the California border – was seen in the video.
While reiterating their objection to the actions of those in the video that spread nationally and internationally on social media, officials continued to criticize internet “detectives” who have misidentified those in the video.
People online have said those in blackface makeup, which is considered bigoted, and jailhouse costumes came from Canyon View High School. And an article that remains online as of Wednesday evening in the online version of the New York Post states that the teens came from Cedar High School.
Shauna Lund, a spokesperson with the Iron County School District, told St. George News / Cedar City News late Wednesday night that a joint investigation with the Cedar City Police Department has determined the three in the video don’t attend either school.
“We can definitively say the three individuals in blackface are not students in Iron County schools,” Lund said. “The individuals depicted in the video have all been identified; the investigation into their involvement is continuing.”
Lund did not say whether the six other teens seen accompanying the three in blackface have been traced to Iron County Schools. Southern Utah University officials also said in a statement that their own internal investigation determined no connection between any students at the university and the video.
However, Lund did say that no one in the video is connected with Cedar Valley High School hundreds of miles away.
That position was also reiterated by the school’s district in Utah County.
“Cedar Valley High School students were not involved in the video. Additionally, we are deeply concerned that some of our students have been targeted with hateful and slanderous comments and threats,” the Alpine School District said in a statement. “All need to be vigilant about protecting our students and families, and we empathize with those who were wrongly accused and continue to receive threats.”
Iron County officials and the school district also pointed out to St. George News / Cedar City News that as minors, the identity of those involved is not likely to be publicly revealed in any case. They also said that despite some online calling the incident a hate crime, there is nothing in the video that indicates a crime took place and that the wearing of what is considered a racist costume is not itself a crime.
But Lund said regardless, the school district is looking to help students who are having difficulties dealing with either the fallout from the video or what is represented in it.
“We have supports and resources available for students who are struggling as a result of the incident and encourage students to speak with school administration or their counselor to access these supports,” Lund said. “Our district and schools continue to promote inclusiveness and acceptance. We denounce all forms of discrimination and racism whether those actions are on campus or off campus, in person or online.”
Ed. Note Nov. 3, 9 p.m. A clarification has been made that it was Iron County officials, rather than those with Cedar City, that said there is nothing in the video to indicate a crime took place.
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