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00:00What's wrong with people?
00:10Someone said a racial slur towards me.
00:13What happened? A girl called him in work.
00:16What, are people hiding it?
00:18One nation under God...
00:20I walked past two boys.
00:22They said a slur. You can guess what it was.
00:25This is a 14-year-old kid.
00:27If we were at home, it's a different situation,
00:30and I feel that we have to be careful.
00:36Britain and the United States, at once familiar...
00:40Can you do a British accent?
00:42I'd like to have a pot of tea.
00:44..and also very different.
00:46If they come for your guns, give them your bullets first.
00:50Hello out there.
00:52But how well do we really know each other?
00:54I've heard you guys like beans and toast.
00:56All I've got to base it off is TikTok.
01:00Do you trust TikTok? No, I don't trust TikTok.
01:03Now, two groups of teenagers...
01:05He's going somewhere.
01:07..who have barely set foot abroad...
01:09It smells really bad like weed right here. Can we move?
01:12..are about to find out.
01:14Oh, my days!
01:17..they're going to exchange places...
01:19Come on.
01:20..between a multicultural comprehensive in South London...
01:23South London is, like, very funny, very welcoming most of the time.
01:27..and a mainly white Christian high school in rural Arkansas.
01:31This is what we're going to use to squirrel hunt today.
01:34Shoot them up, bang, bang.
01:36Yes, little man.
01:39..they'll live with each other's families...
01:41I've got to get them out of here. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
01:44Easy now. ..hang out with each other's friends...
01:47He's lame. They're in love with you.
01:49..and go to each other's lessons.
01:51Please do not make me mom voice you.
01:54My frustration level is to a boiling point.
01:57..will the grass be greener?
01:59College itself was founded in 1571.
02:02I could probably see myself studying somewhere like this.
02:04In my dreams.
02:06..or will they come to realise there's no place like home?
02:09I'll never live anywhere. I can't pee in my own front yard.
02:12I don't really want to leave, Mum. I really want to stay here.
02:22South London is one of the most diverse areas of the UK.
02:26The Elm Green School, a state comprehensive,
02:29is right at the heart of it.
02:31And 14-year-old Dejan will soon be leaving here for Arkansas.
02:35Are you the best basketball player in the school?
02:37Nah, but I could be one of the best.
02:40You've got people in South London that are actually, like, nice,
02:43but then also you've got those people in South London that are just rude.
02:47A lot of our young people feel they have to look over their shoulder.
02:51And by rights, it's dangerous for our young people.
02:55I can see why Dejan could feel that being away from those pressures
02:59could be beneficial.
03:01South London is a...
03:03..it's quite a complicated area.
03:08Dejan and his mum, Hillary,
03:10are shopping for his last home-cooked dinner
03:12before he leaves for America.
03:14What food are you going to miss, apart from ackee and saltfish?
03:17I'm going to miss probably callaloo.
03:22What, the callaloo and saltfish?
03:24Yeah, the callaloo and saltfish, the baked bean and...
03:27Saltfish? Yeah.
03:29It's a lot of saltfish, isn't it?
03:31He's a caring, loving boy,
03:33and when I first found out that he wanted to be a part of the exchange,
03:37I was actually quite taken aback,
03:39because he's never been away from home for such a long period.
03:44Dejan, do you enjoy going shopping with your mum?
03:46Of course. I love this woman to death.
03:48Please, excuse me. Wow!
03:54Are you sure you've packed everything in your bag?
03:56You've got your chargers, you've got your reading book? Yeah.
03:59Packed and ready to travel with Dejan is his classmate, Jude.
04:04Can you hurry up a bit, please?
04:06That's fine. So that we can say your prayers.
04:09The pandemic affected him very badly.
04:14Jude broke down.
04:16And when you ask him what was wrong with him, he couldn't tell you.
04:20The only thing he could tell you was,
04:22it's not fair for us to be home.
04:24Over here, we've got my room.
04:26I sleep on this top bunk.
04:28My little brother sleeps on this middle bunk.
04:31And my sister sleeps on the bottom bunk.
04:36I really do wish I had my own room,
04:38because don't tell anyone this, but, like,
04:40my brothers do snore quite a lot.
04:42Like, when I'm trying to sleep, I just hear them just doing...
04:45SNORING
04:47I'm like, what the hell? What the hell, Jude? Please.
04:50My scum, my scum.
04:56Like most of his classmates,
04:58the trip to Arkansas will be the longest Jude has ever been away from his family.
05:02All right, mate. I'll see you soon, OK?
05:06Soon is not three weeks, you know.
05:09The South London students are headed here.
05:13The town of Mina.
05:15Mina is a small southern town.
05:18It's very secluded. We're an hour and a half away from everything.
05:22It's full of beauty.
05:25Most of the people in Mina are white.
05:27Yeah, we're not very diverse.
05:29And very religious. We have a church on every other corner.
05:32Families in Mina have stayed here their entire lives.
05:35Generations have stayed here their entire lives.
05:37It's just a bunch of hillbillies.
05:41Waylon is a very free-range kid.
05:44Very busy hunting, fishing, trapping.
05:47Him and his brother brought in a possum into the house one time.
05:506.30 in the morning.
05:52Like, look what we got.
05:54Get that out of the house.
05:58The girls are bull-riding. I pretty much hold on with one hand
06:01and you just stay there.
06:03You just hold on with one hand and you just stay on for eight seconds.
06:06We're looking to get to that eighth-second whistle right here.
06:12Whoo!
06:14Hey! Back in the middle!
06:19I like to live in a small town like this.
06:22I've never moved houses or towns or schools.
06:25I have never left this country.
06:28I never really left Arkansas.
06:30Arkansas, land of opportunity, Arkansas.
06:35Waylon is currently in his sophomore year at Mina High School.
06:39Most people in the world, when they hear Arkansas,
06:42literally as late as the 70s,
06:45people would look to see if you were wearing shoes.
06:50City people and country people are not that different,
06:52but it's a very conservative state.
06:54Still pockets of liberals in the community,
06:58I mean, that's fine, you have to have that.
07:01You don't want everybody one way.
07:03When Waylon's classmate, Jayla,
07:05heard she could leave conservative Arkansas to travel to South London,
07:09she didn't hesitate.
07:11She said, Mom, this is something that I really, really want to do,
07:14and I said, do it. Live your dream.
07:17I don't really go that many places.
07:19I'm also, like, really quiet,
07:21because I would say for me to be biracial in this school,
07:24it's difficult, but you have to learn to be proud of it.
07:29My dad's heritage is African American and Hispanic.
07:33Like, I'm very proud of my race,
07:35and I wear a bracelet that's, like, Black Lives Matter or whatever.
07:39People try to cut it off.
07:41When we're doing history projects, they'll be like,
07:43I want to do a project about how we should bring slaves back.
07:47And I'm like, what?
07:49Here in Mina, people look at her color and they say,
07:52you're not good enough.
07:54I miss you so much, baby. I miss you too.
07:56Come here and give me love. Bye, Mom.
07:58I love you. Love you too.
08:04You'll be all right. Don't worry, my love.
08:06It's called emotions. It's called emotions.
08:09Yeah? Go on.
08:11Don't worry, don't worry, cos you're going to start me off. Don't.
08:14You're going to start me off. Don't.
08:16Don't. Stop!
08:19South London and Mina are 4,500 miles apart.
08:30Look out, UK.
08:32Americans are coming your way.
08:35My hope for her when she goes to London is to find herself again.
08:41I cannot imagine Waylon living a city life at all.
08:48It would be like putting a butterfly in the Arctic.
08:53The thing I'm most looking forward to is the plane ride,
08:55cos I've never been on a plane.
08:57I think it's going to be exciting.
08:59And it won't just be Waylon's first time on a plane.
09:02Can I go up the escalator for fun?
09:04We're not riding the escalator for fun.
09:06I've never been on one before.
09:08You've never been up an escalator, Waylon? No.
09:10You've never been to a mall?
09:12I've been into one mall, but I stayed on the bottom floor
09:14and went to the food court and ate something.
09:16We're going to stand right here and wait,
09:18because Waylon is going to take his first escalator ride.
09:23Don't fall.
09:25Yes, Waylon!
09:28He's fancy now.
09:30I can walk up the stairs faster than that plane will take you.
09:37Do you have anything to say about this is your first time on an aeroplane?
09:39We're looking forward to it.
09:41It's exciting.
09:43Eight hours, 42 minutes.
09:45It's the only way in.
09:47We made it, we made it, we made it!
09:50After a five-hour drive from the airport...
09:53Help.
09:55You'll be fine, Jude.
09:57Jude is about to see his new home.
09:59Where's the long walk?
10:01Don't find out. Oh, God.
10:06Oh, wow, they have an electric fence.
10:11I wonder why they have an electric fence.
10:16Oh!
10:19Oh!
10:21Oh!
10:23Oh!
10:29Four and a half thousand miles from South London,
10:32Jude is about to move into his new home in Arkansas.
10:36Miles actually looks nice.
10:38What's he saying?
10:40I don't know.
10:42He'll be living with Stacey and Steve.
10:45Oh, my goodness. Hello.
10:47I bet you're tired.
10:49Oh, I'm very tired.
10:51Come give us a hug.
10:53Oh!
10:55Oh, so glad to meet you.
10:57Steve, nice to meet you. And I'm Stacey.
10:59Oh, you both have asses in you. That's how she sits.
11:01What do you think?
11:03I actually love it. Thank you so much.
11:05Oh, you're welcome. I'm so glad you're here.
11:07Let's show him his room. Come on in.
11:09No!
11:13Oh!
11:15We thought you'd be hungry, so we got you some snacks.
11:18Oh, my dear. Thank you so much.
11:20Oh, honey, you're welcome.
11:22We're glad to have you.
11:24We're so glad to have you.
11:26Me having my own room is just a dream come true.
11:33But I don't want to cry.
11:36Are we getting closer?
11:38Oh, it's so cute!
11:40Everything is just, it looks smaller,
11:42like the doorways and stuff.
11:44It's like a little Hobbit hole.
11:46Have you all watched The Lord of the Rings?
11:48I really hope my family has kids.
11:50I really hope mine don't, personally.
11:52I'm tired of my siblings.
11:54But Jayla won't be alone in her new home.
11:57Hi!
11:59Hi, Jayla.
12:01I don't know which one it is.
12:03I don't know which one it is.
12:05She'll be sharing with Zayla.
12:07I've had classes with Zayla.
12:09We're not part of the same groups or whatever.
12:11Are you ready? Yes, I'm ready.
12:13It's not like I've got to know them.
12:18Dear Lord, thank you so much for this meal
12:20we're about to receive, Lord, and thank you for this time.
12:23Zayla's family have lived in Arkansas for generations.
12:26I'm very close to God, so when I'm super sad,
12:29having God there and being Christian,
12:31it's super, super nice.
12:33Amen.
12:35Religion is definitely the culture here.
12:37I don't know if you've heard the term Bible Belt,
12:39but Arkansas and the Midwest and South is in the Bible Belt.
12:42Arkansas is very conservative.
12:44Yeah.
12:46Hey, guys!
12:48Nice to meet you.
12:50Thank you so much, welcome!
12:53Zayla and Jayla will be living with Kate and Zoe,
12:56who's a teacher at Elm Green.
12:59It's heavy, it's really heavy.
13:04I'm going to get the bathroom.
13:06Yeah, yeah, yeah.
13:08Me too, look.
13:10Easy now, Zayla.
13:12And then this is our bedroom.
13:14Very nice.
13:16You don't see a lot of that type of thing in Mina.
13:19I don't think I know anybody who's like that,
13:21it's very conservative.
13:23Yeah, I wasn't expecting it,
13:25but I'm glad that that's the way it worked out.
13:34My favourite part so far is...
13:37I don't know who I'm living with yet.
13:40Hello.
13:42Waylon will be living with Becky and Spencer,
13:45their son Isaac and his pet snake, Pistachio.
13:48I'm all right with them, I catch snakes.
13:50Or if they're by my house, I kill them.
13:52Oh, right.
13:54Have you got a gun at home?
13:56I have, like, six in my home.
13:58Do you? And what sort of things do you...
14:00Why have one when you can have six?
14:02What sort of things do you hunt?
14:04Deer after school almost every day, every weekend.
14:08So typically on a Sunday we'd do a roast dinner,
14:10I don't know if that's something that you would...
14:12I made a roast one time.
14:14Did you? I did.
14:16I made mine with a raccoon, though.
14:18Oh! Yeah.
14:20So what's raccoon taste like?
14:22It's a raccoon that...
14:24My dad's ate it when he was a kid,
14:26but, like, the first raccoon we've ate in a long time.
14:29Culture shock, I suppose, is on a sort of language level.
14:32One word that he used was slightly awkward.
14:35He was talking about hunting raccoons and he'd shortened that,
14:38so we had to say that we understand what he was saying,
14:41but, yeah, he couldn't use that word.
14:43In hunting, I understand you've said raccoon.
14:46Out of context, that would go down like an absolute bomb.
14:49Raccoon was, like, 40% black.
14:52Yeah. So... OK.
14:58Back in Arkansas, Waylon's family also have a new arrival.
15:02A London kid and Waylon.
15:05What would be the difference?
15:08I would say a lot.
15:10I think we're here, Deja.
15:12We're here.
15:14I think he's your tag.
15:16I think he's a little bit nervous,
15:19especially because he's a normal teenage boy that loves his mum.
15:24So he's going to miss home.
15:26He'll tell you he won't, but he is.
15:31Hi. Hey, how are you?
15:33All right.
15:35Awesome. I'm Justin.
15:37Nice to meet you. This is my wife, Stephanie.
15:40This is our son, Vlad. Nice to meet you.
15:42That is so awesome.
15:44I wasn't expecting to...
15:48Well, this is our house.
15:50Our living room's right down here.
15:52To prepare for Dejawn's arrival,
15:54Justin and Stephanie have been busy.
15:57Waylon, he has, like, a drawer full of knives and everything,
16:00so I had to make sure and get all of his knives out.
16:03We don't lock our guns up in the safe all the time,
16:05so we had to go behind each door,
16:07make sure there wasn't a gun back there,
16:09all the crossbow bolts and the arrows for the bows.
16:12But other than that, we didn't really do a whole lot.
16:17This right here is the room that you'll be staying in.
16:20This is Waylon's room, so you get a little glimpse of Waylon.
16:27If you brought a fishing pole, you'll have a place to put that.
16:31So...
16:33That's pretty much our little house.
16:36It's not a lot, but we like it.
16:39You want to take your bag and go ahead and unpack,
16:42take a chill for a minute?
16:54I know it's hard for Dejawn to come 4,000 miles from his family.
16:59I don't know.
17:01Just give him all the tools that he needs to thrive
17:04and all the encouraging words and help that we can give him.
17:09I think he's a little shy.
17:11And we could be a little bit, you know, kind of up in his face,
17:14maybe, I don't know.
17:16He's got deer heads hanging on his wall, he'll be like...
17:21For me not to have my mum,
17:23I just need to get through these first couple of days.
17:26I feel like my mum wouldn't want to see me upset.
17:30Here I go, falling down, down, down.
17:33My mind is a blank.
17:35My head is spinning around and around.
17:39It's the Elm Green students' first day at Mina High.
17:43Are you excited to find out what your classes are?
17:45Yes. Oh, my God, yeah.
17:47And the curriculum isn't quite what they're used to.
17:50I have cheer. I have cheer as well.
17:52I have cheer as well.
17:56Pineapple princess, he calls me pineapple princess.
18:00The thing that I am most proud of
18:02is just the amount of school spirit that we have.
18:06We say spirit, you say God and spirit.
18:10The cheerleader's purpose is to pump our football players up
18:15or if it's a basketball player, to pump our basketball players up.
18:18It's just another one of those examples
18:21of being a community who's proud of their school.
18:25It's just a big deal.
18:28I feel like their faces are very, like, what's the word?
18:31Expressive. Yeah, like...
18:33Very smiley.
18:35Really happy.
18:36They perform for their school and get really hyped.
18:39If we did it in the UK... Yeah, our school did that.
18:41Yeah, our school would, like, complain, cuss us out.
18:44Like, it's not the same type of energy,
18:46it's not the same type of enjoyment or the same type of hype.
18:49For Ashay, school in South London hasn't been as positive.
18:53It's really tricky to say how I would explain it
18:57cos I don't like to use the word bullying.
19:00I didn't realise people didn't like me
19:03until one friend showed me this group chat
19:06and all these screenshots and all these negative things
19:09being said about me.
19:11When it comes to social media and phones, it can get really bad.
19:16I developed psoriasis from stress.
19:19People trying to give me death threats
19:21or people following me home and saying all these things,
19:24but I don't even know what reason it was.
19:27I don't think children realise the damage that can be done.
19:31Do you feel like the experience has made you stronger?
19:35Um...
19:36I would say I am a person who forgives.
19:39I tend to try and forgive and forget.
19:43I don't want you girls to hurt yourselves
19:45if you're not used to doing this,
19:47so don't do it if you don't feel comfortable, OK?
19:51Woo!
19:53She got it by herself. Good job.
19:55Yes, Rochelle! Yes, Rochelle!
19:57OK!
19:58People here are a lot nicer than they would be in the UK.
20:01London's just mushed down, man.
20:03London is just a bit...
20:06Yeah, it's a bit palatable.
20:10When the Elm Green students came, they were very excited
20:13about the different types of classes that we offer here.
20:16We push every student to be involved in something.
20:20That is one of the things about an American high school.
20:23There's going to be team sports.
20:25The British gave us the idea of team sports.
20:27Y'all did that.
20:28I'm not sure what the earliest trophy we have here.
20:31There's one from 1922.
20:33There's the 1983 trophy that I won as a player.
20:37Conference Football Championship.
20:39Yes!
20:40Team on three. One, two, three.
20:42Let's play just five on five.
20:44Let's play to, like, seven.
20:46And let's shoot a free throw to win.
20:48Dejan and Jude have been invited to try out for the basketball team.
20:53Team sports are designed to teach students to work together.
20:57And the psychological part of that is they belong.
21:00They are accepted.
21:02This isn't the first time Dejan has had to try to become accepted
21:06at a new school.
21:08Dejan and a couple of friends went out to play basketball
21:12and they were jumped and they threw a knife out on him.
21:18Because of that, he was nervous and was bringing a knife to school.
21:23He had it in his bag and he ran along the corridor
21:26and it dropped out of the bag.
21:28As a parent, you don't want to hear someone call you and say to you,
21:31oh, your child's come to school with a knife.
21:33Less than 18 months into his first secondary school,
21:36Dejan had to leave and start again at Elm Green.
21:40I said to him, is that the life you want to lead?
21:43And he basically just said, Mum, I don't want to die.
21:48There wasn't anything I could say.
21:50I just went quiet because I didn't realise
21:52that it had affected him that much.
21:55Your child alone can be quite dangerous.
21:58At one point, my mum was so scared for me to even just go to the shops.
22:02Exactly.
22:03To go to the shops, that's only, what, five minutes, a three-minute walk.
22:08That's just... No mother should have to feel scared
22:11that her child can't leave the house without being scared,
22:15without being injured or losing their life.
22:20Being able to get away from all of that, so much, man.
22:24It just gives us a break to just live our lives.
22:30It's so easy to just get stuck in this world
22:33and think this is all that's happening.
22:35So, it's so important for Dejan to get out of London.
22:38I think playing basketball allowed him to forget about,
22:42worry about what's happening at home, in the UK.
22:45Hey, you can't let him do you like that.
22:47And just focus on things that he loves. He loves basketball.
22:52The whole set-up alone is just amazing.
22:55Oh, good. There we go.
22:57When the team, you can feel, like, the warmness,
23:00the welcoming feeling from them.
23:02I think the fact that I'm able to do this, it's just real good.
23:05Like, it's helping my nerves and everything.
23:07Oh, wait, coach.
23:08Can you confirm that we're in the basketball team
23:10for the time period that we have?
23:12Yeah, yeah.
23:15Thank you so much, coach.
23:17All right, family on three. One, two, three, family!
23:20Never mind.
23:21I think we turn on their fans.
23:23You turn on their fans?
23:26Wait, does it turn on every time we say family?
23:30Oh, boy!
23:34Dear Lord, we thank you for this day and the opportunity to play today.
23:37I pray that you will be with these players tonight and keep them safe.
23:40Making it onto a team at Mina High
23:43is the start of a relationship that lasts a lifetime.
23:46In Jesus' name, amen.
23:51At every home game, for every sport,
23:53the entire town turns out to support the school.
23:56Let's go, Birkins!
24:00You'll have grandparents in the stands
24:02watching grandchildren and great-grandchildren play,
24:05and they play, too.
24:07And so you've got that generational thing.
24:10It's important.
24:11It holds the community together.
24:14Not too good right now.
24:15It looks like the score is 20-7.
24:17Four and a half minutes to halftime.
24:20Nashville's always been a tough team for me,
24:22even when I was in school.
24:24They were tough to beat when I was in school.
24:27We can seat close to 3,000 people.
24:30It's loud. It's boisterous.
24:33We raise the roof.
24:38I've had five chili dogs.
24:40Oh, my days.
24:41Two cheeseburgers.
24:42Oh, my days.
24:44Seven Dr Peppers.
24:45Oh, my days.
24:46And the atmosphere.
24:48I think that's what I've enjoyed the most,
24:50because everyone around is just so nice and friendly.
24:53But during halftime,
24:55some in the crowd weren't quite so welcoming.
24:58You cannot say that!
25:00Oh, Dejan. Dejan.
25:02A student from a neighbouring school
25:04aimed a racial slur at Dejan.
25:07Something bad just went down.
25:09What happened?
25:10A girl called him the N-word.
25:12I'm so sorry, man.
25:14I'm so sorry she just said that.
25:16I'm so sorry.
25:17I'm so sorry.
25:18I'm so sorry.
25:19I'm so sorry.
25:20I'm so sorry.
25:21I'm so sorry she just said that.
25:32Dejan has been racially abused
25:34by a neighbouring school student
25:36at a MENA High football game.
25:38At the time, I didn't really know how to act on it,
25:41cos being as I'm not from here,
25:44so I wasn't really sure on what I was supposed to do
25:47or how I was supposed to react.
25:50So I didn't really say anything.
25:53Dejan's experience of racism,
25:55I heard about days afterwards.
25:58He didn't know what to do.
25:59He said this to me, he just kind of froze.
26:02When you were thinking about going there,
26:04you were worried about racism.
26:06I have to be honest, the first few days,
26:08I was nervous, I was worried.
26:10Every day, leaving school and going.
26:12I remember the police were following me to school one morning
26:15and I was panicking.
26:18The drive is probably about three minutes,
26:20but that was a long three minutes
26:22that police car was behind me for.
26:25It was a long three minutes.
26:27And I was worried, I thought, oh, this is it.
26:30But, of course, it was fine,
26:32but those things were happening still.
26:39I woke up to the morning sky first
26:43Weyland's still getting used to life
26:46at a South London comprehensive.
26:48I feel a bit strange in a uniform.
26:51It just feels, like, completely different
26:54because we don't wear these.
26:56And I don't wear a suit or a jacket a lot,
26:59so it just feels extremely different to me.
27:02That's my cowboy hat.
27:04Do you think it would suit the uniform?
27:06Oh, yeah, I think it would suit the uniform just fine, personally.
27:12But I don't think the school would like it very much.
27:17Uniform isn't the only thing
27:19that Weyland and his MENA classmates have to adjust to.
27:22The school food there is just horrid.
27:24That was some food I wanted to spit out and never eat again in my life.
27:27Peel the chicken.
27:29I'm scared.
27:30My mom usually packs my lunch,
27:32so I'm pretty spoiled when it comes to lunch.
27:34It smells like a wet dog.
27:37We're eating chicken and rice is what it looks like.
27:40And I heard that it's the Black Lives Matter month.
27:43No, no, it's Black History Month.
27:45Black History Month.
27:47Black History Month, and so people,
27:49they're serving, like, their cultural food.
27:52That's the widest thing you've ever said, this whole trend.
27:56They celebrated Black History Month.
27:58It felt good because I was represented.
28:01We had recently done a DNA test,
28:03and on my dad's side,
28:05it said that his roots come back from Nigeria.
28:08Today is the first assembly you have for Black History Month.
28:13We don't even acknowledge that.
28:15Because, like, people from MENA are definitely conservative.
28:18When my dad's here, he doesn't like going in public that often.
28:21When I'm in the store with my dad,
28:23you can just feel it, like, you can feel the people looking at you,
28:27like, because you're different.
28:31I want to say it's not a racist town,
28:33because it's not a racist town.
28:35Like, it's genuinely not.
28:38But, like, people will be racist.
28:41That's just a matter of fact.
28:43Also, we only have, like, five or six black people in, like, our entire school.
28:49Jayla came home, and she was talking to me, and she said,
28:52Mom, she said, this boy had wrote a note,
28:55and they were passing it around.
28:57And so she yanked it out of his hand,
28:59and on the paper, it said the N word.
29:01And so she took it, tore it up, and threw it in the trash,
29:05and, of course, everybody was like, oh, you suck, you know.
29:08I mean, I don't know exactly what the words were they said to her,
29:11but it's just the principle that they're still sitting there, like,
29:14and they're so comfortable, kids are so comfortable
29:17just to run up to her and say, N word, run off.
29:24It's like, you want your child to fit in,
29:26but it's like, what extent do they have to go to fit in?
29:31At Elm Green, we've really tried to make sure
29:34that we think about how black people locally have contributed
29:38to the civil rights movement in the UK.
29:40The diversity in London is crazy,
29:42like, there's so many nationalities and races, it's amazing.
29:50I don't feel judged by anyone anymore, and it's awesome.
29:53I feel like I can just be me, Jayla, not, oh, the dark,
29:58or the coloured kid, you know, like that.
30:00Did the London people do research?
30:02Because when I told them that I was from Arkansas,
30:05they said one of the girls was like, oh, y'all are racist,
30:08and then ran away.
30:10Where are you from? Arkansas.
30:12Oh, that's not racist, please. No, no, no!
30:15No, no, no!
30:17It felt kind of like a personal attack, like,
30:19I'm definitely, like, the opposite.
30:23Arkansas, like, had a history of, like, that, I think.
30:26I'm not sure. So she probably knows more than I do.
30:29So she probably knows more about it than me.
30:31But, like, I don't know, it's different now, now than it used to be.
30:34So maybe that's why she formed that opinion.
30:36But, yeah, she wasn't even hearing me out.
30:38I was saying it's different, and she didn't hear me out.
30:41I feel like America just kind of has a bad stereotype.
30:44Or not America, maybe Arkansas.
30:48Oh, my God, Taylor's got a crowd around her.
30:50Most people are very nice and actually, like, want to get to know
30:54about, like, where I'm from without, like, judging it.
30:58Yeah. Do you like it?
31:00Yeah, I love it.
31:02Have you all lived in London your whole lives?
31:04Yeah. No.
31:06I'm born in Italy.
31:08Where are you from, again?
31:10Palestine.
31:12Yeah. I know where you're from.
31:14She's Albanian.
31:18Yeah, no, our school, we don't have, like, anything.
31:20Just Americans?
31:22Yeah, and, like, all white people.
31:24We have three black people at our school.
31:26No culture at all. It's kind of sad.
31:31Where did you get your earrings from?
31:33My earrings?
31:35I'm Shane.
31:40I never thought that London was going to be that diverse.
31:44I don't know what you'd say, but, like, definitely, like,
31:48I honestly don't even know what word I'm looking for.
31:51Hello, stranger.
31:54Seeing people from different, like, countries and all over,
31:57I mean, well, it's definitely, I guess, strange to us
32:00to see all of that in one place.
32:03One thing that we really enjoy about Waylon
32:06is he knows who he is.
32:08He knows who he wants to be.
32:11That's kind of one thing that I did pick up with DJ
32:14and some of the other students from the UK is
32:17they're on a longer journey than somebody like Waylon is.
32:21They haven't found exactly where they want to be,
32:25and I think that's because they have so much diversity over there.
32:31They're flooded with not knowing a direction,
32:34and so it's going to take them longer to decide who they want to be
32:38than growing to young adults, so we'll see.
32:43We went to what's called West Norwood Park or something.
32:47We were sitting there, sitting there, sitting there, sitting there.
32:50I just got extremely bored at one point,
32:53so then I just went and climbed a tree.
32:56I'll catch you, Waylon.
32:58You're like a little baby.
33:00If I feel like talking to you, I'll talk to you all I want to,
33:03but at the same point, I like peace and quiet.
33:05He's in the top of the tree.
33:07Now I have a view of West Norwood that ain't nobody got but me.
33:12But not everyone needs time alone.
33:15Y'all all look young. Y'all are babies.
33:18Compared to us, they look older. I'm just kidding.
33:21Here, I definitely think it's changed my personality in a little bit
33:25because I wasn't really, like, outgoing and talkative to people.
33:30I love Brent Fayos. Yes, do I like him?
33:34I'll probably just go back to my quiet self when I'm back in MENA.
33:37Jayla definitely had a big change.
33:40She just didn't really come out of her shell up until we got to London.
33:45She laughed more and she just talked more
33:47and, like, brought out a different side of her personality.
33:54Did we think about Jayla back at your school?
33:56She's part of, she would say, the group that aren't necessarily most accepted,
34:00whereas you're, in my head,
34:02the stereotypical American dream girl in some ways,
34:05and you get on with everybody.
34:07Did you expect her to come here and then get to be kicked in its head a bit?
34:10I didn't expect her to be super social,
34:12but I didn't expect her to be as talkative.
34:14But I'm glad that she is.
34:16I hope she does that when she goes back to MENA.
34:18Do you think you'll be different when you go back
34:20as a result of finding out about Jayla's experience?
34:23Yeah, I think maybe even get the teachers involved
34:26and just, like, actually enforce stuff about that kind of bullying.
34:32It's not, like, many people in MENA who, like, Jayla's having that problem with,
34:36it's just, like, a few certain kids, I think.
34:38I mean, since I'm not in Jayla's position,
34:41I don't know a lot about what's happening.
34:44Hey, Mum. I don't really want to leave, Mum.
34:47I really want to stay here.
34:52It's going to be really, really hard for me to leave.
34:58Dejan isn't the only Elm Green student who has faced similar abuse to Jayla.
35:05I walked past two boys.
35:07One of them, I'm not going to repeat what they said,
35:10but they said a slur.
35:12I mean, you can guess what it was.
35:14I was a bit shocked. I was like, OK.
35:16I thought you lot were nice.
35:19That was my girl.
35:21I was just walking down the corridor and then two boys next to me,
35:24he's like, oh, tell that Emma to go home.
35:30I'm fuming.
35:32Cos I've been called things before.
35:34I'm not hearing that.
35:36It's the first time we've been called names.
35:38It's a part of being a black person.
35:41We've met good people here and we can tell they're genuine.
35:44Sorry, the reality is some people are racist.
35:50What, are people hiding it?
35:52Are people actually hiding it?
35:54This is a 14-year-old kid.
35:58It's not the first time they've had racist comments to them
36:01and that's the sad thing.
36:03When we're at home, it's a different situation,
36:05but we're not at home.
36:07And I feel that we have to be careful.
36:10America is known for some crazy things that happen in schools
36:14with young people.
36:16So I would not want to...
36:19..to push it and, you know, make something crazy happen.
36:25During their time at Mina High,
36:27Dejan and now Rishay have both suffered racist abuse.
36:32We didn't hide from it there.
36:34It was, let's sort this out now.
36:36Let's go and speak to the vice-principal.
36:38Let's see what we can do about this.
36:41OK, so let's talk.
36:43Two boys talking to each other, but loud.
36:46Loud enough for her to hear.
36:48Yeah, say we don't want any UNs around here.
36:51It just made me feel a bit unsafe.
36:53If it was at home, I know the kids would have just dealt with that quickly.
36:56Yeah, just sorry.
36:58Cos, like, it just breaks my heart.
37:00Because no matter how many times you think that you're past it,
37:04something else happens.
37:06Yeah, yeah.
37:08She was devastated.
37:11It's just, it is hard living in this time
37:14because there is so much hate and there are people, obviously,
37:18who are ignorant, but I have worked very hard to make sure
37:22that it doesn't matter who you are.
37:25Every kid deserves a shot, no matter what.
37:29We were happy to continue the experience
37:31because we felt that Mena High School,
37:34they did deal with the incidents.
37:36But they were heartbreaking to watch.
37:41For Mena High students' grandparents' generation,
37:44the presence of black children in Arkansas' school system
37:47was a violently divisive issue.
37:50But historically, the town itself had taken segregation even further.
37:56Post-Civil War,
37:58towns would advertise themselves as sundown towns,
38:02which meant that people who were not white
38:05were not welcome in town after the sun went down.
38:08It was dangerous for them to be there after sundown.
38:11And so there were advertisements for Mena bragging
38:14about how it was 100% white and things like that.
38:18And it's really like a dark part of our history.
38:21So that's definitely a thing that we're not proud of.
38:24There's racism anywhere you go.
38:26But I will say that I do feel like our kids are fiercely loyal.
38:30So when they have decided that you're part of the team,
38:33whatever team that might be,
38:35yeah, they tend to stand up pretty quick.
38:37Even before I can do anything,
38:39the kids will be like, no, you can't say that,
38:42we don't talk like that, we don't do that.
38:44It really warms your heart when kids are sticking up for other kids.
38:48My American friends that I had made here,
38:51they backed me and said, no, you should never say that to someone.
38:55You're disgusting and you're just a bad soul.
38:58I told my friends and they were like, no, that's not right.
39:01I was like, but I don't care.
39:03You hear about racism all the time, like, you get over it.
39:07It's only offence if I take offence to it.
39:10And I know I'm not, like, yeah.
39:13But you know what I'm trying to say, it's not that deep.
39:16Make the world go away...
39:20Is it sad that a teenager is quite stoic about it?
39:25They haven't even been in the world for that long,
39:28but they already have that kind of...
39:32..that normalised... It's like it's been normalised for them
39:35so Rache's got that kind of hard shell.
39:38Like, oh, yeah, this is natural.
39:40This happens and that is not OK.
39:43Do you remember when you loved me?
39:48I think I was worried that, obviously,
39:51having read a bit about Mina, I didn't know how liberal you'd be,
39:55I didn't know if you'd be homophobic, I didn't know if you'd be racist,
39:58I didn't know, you know, all of those types of things, so...
40:01Everybody reads about Mina.
40:03I know. Well, no, I think it's...
40:05I think it wasn't just Mina, it's the certain areas of America.
40:09People at school, when they say, like, stuff about Arkansas or stuff,
40:12they more so, like, personalise it to me being those things.
40:16And I'm just like, how does that make any sense?
40:19Mina is probably such a different experience for me than it is you,
40:22for sure. I see, like, more of the brighter things, like,
40:25besides because I don't have a bunch of, like, difficulties.
40:28So when you share your stories, like, about how, you know, you get...
40:33..racial things that happen to you that are, like, not OK,
40:36it's, like, really hard for me to hear about that.
40:38Some of the kids in Mina are like that, and it's like,
40:41I try to stop it as much as I can, but, like, who's going to listen to me?
40:45I've been acknowledging it, but I just wasn't acknowledging it
40:48as much for you because I didn't see it as much. Yeah, yeah.
40:51I need to, like, be more aware of that kind of thing, you know what I mean?
40:54Yeah, yeah, yeah.
40:58I was once this outgoing, popular kid, you know,
41:01who talked and everything, and when I went to Mina school,
41:04then, like, that light died, and, you know, I started being quiet
41:08and not talking and anything.
41:09My brother's just now getting into middle school.
41:11This is his first time experiencing, like, this...
41:16..where he's crying, and his light is dying,
41:19and I do not want that for my family.
41:21I don't want all of us to just be these kids
41:25who don't want to talk about anything, or...
41:27I don't want them to be like me.
41:32They're just going to get tired of it, and they're...
41:35I am tired of it, like, I just wear out.
41:37I let them say it.
41:38I don't even care anymore because it's tiring.
41:40Like, I just don't feel like doing anything anymore.
41:43And I don't want them to do that.
41:44I want them to still have that light
41:46and know it's not going to happen.
41:49I wish I could transport your family here,
41:52so that you would be OK.
41:55There's obviously good people in that town,
41:58but I'm doing that thing that people are doing here.
42:01Arkansas is racist.
42:03I'm like, these few people are probably everyone else's,
42:07and I need to stop doing that.
42:09That's on my part, because Saylor is literally awesome.
42:13I've been judging everyone who's in her friend group,
42:17who's even close to her, as being racist.
42:21And I shouldn't, because they're Saylors.
42:24Yes.
42:25We need a T-shirt that says,
42:27there are Saylors.
42:29There are Saylors.
42:30There are Saylors.
42:37Saylor called us really upset that night.
42:40This family has always been about, you know, service to others,
42:44and I think that's what she said.
42:46She said, you know,
42:47This family has always been about, you know, service to others,
42:50and I think just opening her eyes and seeing how much that affected her.
42:55I'm really glad that she had that moment.
42:58It empowered her that, you know, she can be the change as well.
43:03And honestly, I think it would be good for the community.
43:07Hop on up in there, Dijon.
43:11Are you surfin'?
43:12Yeah.
43:13Let's hit some major waves.
43:17This week has been quite a stressful week.
43:20It's basically like moving to a new area
43:23and just, like, trying to find your place in that area.
43:27You'll push that.
43:29You'll push that.
43:31And just, like, trying to find your place in that area.
43:34You'll push that.
43:36You'll leave it, hold it in there.
43:38And then when you throw it, you're going to let go.
43:42In Mino, there's just, like, 1% of people that are racist.
43:46I'd say 99% of them aren't like that.
43:52There you go.
43:54We could tell he definitely felt like he was out of place.
43:57We really wanted to help him overcome that
44:00because if he would have just stayed in that situation,
44:04he would have never enjoyed the journey that he's on.
44:07Me and Justin just talked about it,
44:10and we thought, you know, we needed to give him the space he needed
44:13to kind of, you know, just relax a little bit.
44:16What do you think about it so far?
44:18I love it.
44:20It's nice and peaceful and quiet.
44:23I mean, all this.
44:25The scenery's just great.
44:27Yes, so it always makes fishing even better.
44:30Even if you're not catching fish,
44:32you still get to enjoy all of God's creation.
44:39Look at the scenery and clear your mind.
44:41No, just take it in, huh?
44:43Yeah.
44:45It's mind-blowing to me that these kids had the courage
44:48to leave their homes and go 4,000 miles away
44:52and live with a family that they've never met.
44:54They don't have a clue what they're walking into.
44:58So we really wanted DJ to feel like he was part of our family.
45:03I mean, have you done much fishing?
45:05The only fishing I've done is on the video game.
45:08On the video game?
45:10There you go.
45:12Well, if he wasn't here, we'd have whaling,
45:15and so DJ kind of stepped into whaling shoes.
45:19Did you catch one?
45:21Oh, no, it's on there.
45:23Oh, it's on there.
45:25Up you come, friend, up you come.
45:28We just wanted him to feel welcome.
45:30Welcome, yeah.
45:34Do you want to go back?
45:36It's good luck to kiss your first fish.
45:41Kiss it.
45:44Here.
45:47I kissed it.
45:52Next time...
45:54We have so many school shootings.
45:56If they actually cared, they would do something.
45:59I am a reserve deputy. There are several of us.
46:02We are a right-to-carry state, as some of our citizens do.
46:05I want you to know how excited I am about this.
46:09I'd say just about every kid has a gun by the time they're 12.
46:13Push it. There you go.
46:15I think Waylon was eight or nine.
46:18Naomi, do you want me to film it?
46:20Oh, yeah.
46:21Ready?
46:22Does that give you license to kick?
46:24Yes, ma'am. I would have to do that.
46:27Ooh, interesting.
46:31The series continues next Tuesday from 8.
46:34Now an idea to challenge a curriculum going right to the very top with Troy Deeney,
46:38Where's My History? You can stream that right now if you fancy.
46:41Target practice at close to the speed of sound.
46:43Next, keep your wits about you for Top Guns Inside the RAF.
46:50Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:51Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:52Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:53Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:54Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:55Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:56Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:57Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:58Top Guns Inside the RAF
46:59Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:00Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:01Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:02Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:03Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:04Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:05Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:06Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:07Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:08Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:09Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:10Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:11Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:12Top Guns Inside the RAF
47:13Top Guns Inside the RAF