Video appears to show high school students wearing blackface in suburban Chicago

FLOSSMOOR, Ill. (Fox 32 News) - A high school in suburban Chicago is being rocked by a racial scandal after video appears to show some students in blackface.

School officials told four male students at Flossmoor High School in the south suburbs to stay home Monday after the offensive post surfaced on social media.

Fellow students said the four boys seen on video wearing blackface are sophomores. The fellow students said they've heard a couple different reasons about why the boys painted their faces black. Some said the boys intend to join the Army someday and the black paint was Army face paint. Others say it was blackface and that the boys were just ignorant about what blackface implies.

˜I just feel like they don’t understand the gravity of their actions and that’s something very important…They need to understand that’s wrong and why, that it offends people even if that wasn’t their intent, they did it and they need to own up to their actions,” said Flossmoor High School senior Jack Johnson.

˜The Caucasian children running around in blackface and thinking it’s a joke and then you all of a sudden you can’t do anything about it and oh, we need to protect them. Are you saying that those at the school are a protected class?” asked parent Leticia Shelton.

The school sent a letter to parents, calling the social media posts highly offensive and the administration has met with the families involved. Because of confidentiality, they would not reveal what, if any discipline will be taken.

Meanwhile, parents are calling for a protest, possibly a walkout, at the school on Tuesday.