Keaton Jones Bullying ‘Not as Rampant’ as Video Makes It Look, Principal Says

After a young boy went viral online after appearing in a tearful video in which he recounted the bullying he experiences at school, his principal has responded to say that things aren’t “as rampant” as they may appear.

In the clip, Knoxville, Tennessee sixth grade student Keaton Jones describes his classmates pouring milk on him and stuffing ham in his clothes at lunch. The video was uploaded to Facebook Friday by Jones’ mother, Kimberly Jones, and has since amassed millions of views.

“They make fun of my nose,” Keaton said in the clip. “They call me ugly. They say I have no friends.”

“Why do they bully? What’s the point of it? Why do you find joy in taking innocent people and finding a way to be mean to them?” he added. “People that are different don’t need to be criticized about it. It’s not their fault.”

Greg Clay, the principal at Keaton’s school, told Knox News that the incident Keaton describes in the video was resolved weeks ago.

“It’s not as rampant as the video would have you believe,” Clay said. “I can’t tell you what was done, but I can tell you action was taken with the children.”

He added that he was unaware of repeated bullying toward the student. Clay said that the school is planning on holding an assembly Monday to address bullying with students.

“We’re having a good school year,” Clay said. “I’m sorry it’s like this. We all sympathize with Keaton and we’re doing everything we can to make sure it never happens again. Everybody saw the video and it was horrible. We don’t want anyone to feel like that. Keaton’s a good kid. We’ll take care of him.”

Since the video went viral, numerous celebrities have reached out to Keaton with messages of support.

Photo Credit: Facebook / Kimberly Jones