Some high school students have caused outrage after spelling out racist and homophobic slurs on their T-shirts

A high school in California has been forced to take disciplinary action against a group of students who have caused outrage after they spelled out racist and homophobic messages on T-shirts as part of a ‘school prank’ last week, Buzzfeed News reports.

At least 10 seniors at Escondido High School, near San Diego, photographed themselves wearing lettered shirts that spelled out discriminatory slurs like ‘Nigger’ and ‘Fags’ during a picnic.

The school picnic is an annual event and allows students to wear shirts that spell out pre-approved words for a senior photo, according to Buzzfeed News, but this year some students pulled letters from other words to form the offensive statements. They then posted photos on Snapchat and Instagram.

Classmates of the students and alumni were reportedly disgraced by their actions, and screenshotted the images and shared them on social media.

Cade Pannell, who graduated from Escondido High School two years ago, Buzzfeed News reports, snapped a photo of the posts and shared it on Instagram, which soon went viral.

Upon seeing the images, school and district officials and the Escondido Police Department investigated the actions of the students and took action against the students involved. However it is not kown what kind of punishment the students will face.

‘I want to assure you that actions have been taken and students are receiving consequences; however, specifics must remain confidential,’ Escondido High School's principal, Adriana Lepe-Ramirez, said in a statement Sunday. ‘We believe the lessons to be learned need to, and can, far exceed a period of punishment.’

‘Together, we have begun the process of educating all on the implications and power of one’s actions and decisions,’ Lepe-Ramirez said. ‘This will be a continuing process and I will provide updates throughout the year.’