School officials in Wisconsin are investigating after several male students were reportedly seen throwing Sieg Heil in their junior prom photo.
The Baraboo News Republic reported that some of the Baraboo High School Class of 2019 made the offensive gesture last spring while standing on the steps of Sauk County Courthouse. After the picture gained traction on Twitter, the school district—in addition to police—confirmed they’re looking into the matter.
“The photo of students posted to #BarabooProud is not reflective of the educational values and beliefs of the School District of Baraboo. The District will pursue any and all available and appropriate actions, including legal, to address,” Baraboo School District Administrator Lori Mueller tweeted Monday.
The newspaper reported that the picture appears to have originated on photographer Pete Gust’s website, Wheel Memories. Gust has since taken the photo down, and, at one point, reportedly denounced “those in society who can and do take the time to be jerks.”
WMTV spoke with one of the teens who claimed he’s seen in the now-viral photo. Though the teen says he isn’t one of the students who did the Nazi salute, he claims the photographer asked them to the gesture and some of his classmates obliged. The news station couldn’t confirm whether Wheel was the photographer the unnamed student was referring to.
On Monday, the school district sent a letter to parents where they described the students’ actions as “extremely inappropriate.”
It reads, “We are extremely troubled by the image. The school district and local authorities continue to investigate, speaking with the students and families involved to determine how and why this photo was taken.”
The Baraboo School District sent the following letter to parents this afternoon in response to a photo circulating on social media. pic.twitter.com/0IXNUdLeRD
— Baraboo Schools (@barabooSD) November 12, 2018
[Featured Image: Twitter]