If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality. -Desmond Tutu

Trigger warning: This video contains violence that may be disturbing to some.

This is the unedited video of a 7th grader assaulting his teacher on September 16, 2025, at Dai Kim Secondary (Junior High) School in Dinh Cong Ward, Hanoi. Within a few days, the news had spread like wildfire across Vietnamese media and social media. Here’s the Reddit post, which includes an explanation, the video, and colorful comments. I downloaded the video in case this post disappears, which happens.

While he’s grabbing her arm, pulling her hair, and dragging her to the floor, watch how his 30+ classmates respond (or don’t respond). NOTE: This attack lasted for two minutes. Very telling and distressing. The object that the teacher was trying to confiscate and referred to as a “toy” in the local media is a 15 cm (6-inch) Karambit (Indonesian silat weapon) knife. It’s obvious why the teacher was trying to confiscate it.

The delinquent’s “punishment” was a public apology to the teacher and 10 days of “self-reflection” at home, the likely cause and source of his misbehavior.

I have some questions for you, dear reader.

What would you have done?

What does this remind you of on the global stage?

Knowing that these children will grow up to become adults, what does it tell you about how they’re being raised?

One of the first things that came to mind was the ongoing Israeli-executed genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza. In this scenario, it’s obvious who is who: 1) the 7th-grade bully is Israel, 2) the teacher represents the people of Gaza, and 3) the bully’s classmates are most of the world. Silence is complicity.

What these children need is a group counseling session that should also be required of all secondary and high school students. It should focus on empathy and effective responses.

Peace, MAA