Middle school students in Michigan chanted 'build the wall!' during lunch in a video that is going viral
Their words echo the same ubiquitous call that took hold during President-elect Trump's campaign.
A video that appears to show the incident currently has more than 4.7 million views on Facebook, and shows students sitting around tables in the school's cafeteria while a group of students chant.
District Superintendent Shawn Lewis-Lakin confirmed the incident in a public statement, and said that the chants were confined to a "small group of students."
"Because of the strong emotions and intensity of rhetoric that the posting of this incident to social media has elicited, we have had families express concern regarding student safety," the statement read. "Know that we work with our partners in law enforcement on responding to any and all threats that have been or will be made involving our students or schools."
Police were on hand at the middle school all day on Thursday, The Detroit News reported.
"It is so sad. Latino children were crying," wrote the Facebook user who uploaded the video. "The taunts, the 'Build that Wall' with such bullying power and hate from children to children. Just Horrifying!"
Here's the video:
During Trump's campaign, a proposal to erect a wall on the border between the US and Mexico became a clarion call for supporters.
NPR's Cokie Roberts confronted Trump in March about the effect his immigration rhetoric has had on American children, which he called "a very nasty question."