Police in Iceland are investigating after a British schoolgirl was allegedly assaulted by a tour guide while on a school trip to see the Northern Lights.
In a clip posted on social media, the Black teenager can be seen being slapped in the face and chased by a woman at Hotel Örk, Hveragerdi, in an incident on Friday night.
The video quickly went viral, amassing thousands of views online and sparking concern about the child’s well-being while she was on the four-day geography trip.
The child, 13, can be heard telling the woman, who is standing close to her with a finger in her face, “Please don’t come near me”.
The adult is then seen slapping the girl who is then seen running away and being chased by the same woman in a second clip. The girls’ school, Harris Girls’ Academy, contacted Icelandic Police who attended the scene and interviewed the woman but no arrests have been made.
The girl’s mother, Priscilla, who did not want her surname used, told The Independent the incident happened after her daughter spoke up to defend her friend after the woman shouted at her.
“I cannot sleep,” Priscilla said, adding that her daughter had returned to her south London home on Saturday evening feeling completely distraught.
“I feel that there was a racial element to this because the girl that the woman was originally shouting at was my daughter’s white friend. My daughter politely asked her to step back and she slapped her.
“If my child were white, I do not think this would’ve happened. The woman didn’t slap my daughter’s friend, who’s white, or make any attempt to hit but she felt comfortable hitting my child.
“That’s the reality of life; Black people are not respected, valued or appreciated.”
The teenager told The Independent: “I’ve never faced racism and never thought that I would experience it, for the first time in my life, on this trip.”
Priscilla continued: “My daughter is not going to forget this and I told her ‘I’m sorry’ because this is not the experience I signed her up for. This is not the reason why I allowed her to go on the school trip.
“My child is traumatised; she has her own bed but has been sleeping in mine ever since this happened and is asking me to stay home from work.”
“That’s the reality of life; Black people are not respected, valued or appreciated” - the teenager’s mother— (Screenshot)
In an email from Icelandic Police to Priscilla, seen by The Independent, the force said it was investigating the incident and advised the family they could put forward a compensation claim.
Responding to a social media post about the incident on Sunday, Harris Federation, which runs Harris Girls’ Academy, confirmed that the adult in the clip was not from the school.
“The children are safe and ok, and we’ve reported the adult to the police, who are rightly taking it seriously. We share your disgust and are supporting the police investigation,” it added.
In a statement issued on Monday, Hotel Örk said it condemned “all forms of violence”.
“It’s important to clarify that the tour guide was not a hotel employee; she was a guest, staying at our premises, the same as the student. Following the incident, we immediately recommended contacting the local authorities, which in this case was the Icelandic police,” the statement reads.
“The police conducted their investigation, and it’s standard practice in Iceland not to arrest individuals unless the situation is exceptionally violent or poses an ongoing threat.”
The Independent has contacted the Harris Federation and the Icelandic Police for comment.
