A video depicting an apparent racist incident in which a group of pupils auctioned off their black classmates at a Cape Town high school has sparked outrage after it was found circulating on social media.
The footage shared on social media platforms with the caption Slavery at schools is crazy showed black pupils being held in a caged area seemingly used for storing bicycles and umbrellas, while coloured pupils outside the enclosure called for bids.
The video, which cannot be published as it depicts the faces of minors, shows the auctioneer calling for silence before starting the bidding at R100 000. Bids quickly escalate, with some reaching R200 million. At one point, a black student is seen standing inside the cage, smiling, while the auctioneer yells Sold!
The children were all dressed in what appeared to be variations of Pinelands High Schools uniform, reported News24 .
The deeply disturbing and hurtful video sparked outrage as it resembled scenes from between 1658 and 1807 when an estimated 63 000 people were taken from their homes and forcibly brought to a designated area to be sold as slaves.