A former high school in New Jersey is being sued by two Black individuals who claim that they experienced “extreme, egregious, widespread” racism during their time there.
According to a report by Atlanta Black Star, two former students of North Warren Regional High School have recently filed a lawsuit, accusing the school of racism, hostility, and discrimination.
The plaintiffs are a black woman and a guy who attended the institution in 2016 and 2018, respectively. Both former students claim that their friends routinely used the N-word and other slurs, and that school administrators failed to address instances of racism.
According to the lawsuit, a white male student seized the black woman’s bag strings in the hallway and exclaimed, “Look, I have a slave on a leash.” The black male plaintiff claimed that a white student called him a “slave” and lashed him with a belt while he was changing in a locker room in October 2018.
Later that year, classmates allegedly approached the black guy and displayed a banner inviting him to join the KKK, which they renamed the “Kool Kids Klub.” The black male plaintiff further claimed that his colleagues on the school’s wrestling team constantly slurred him in front of the coach and other faculty members.
Despite considering dropping out in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the black female student decided to stay after the school moved its classes online. The black man left the school’s wrestling team and dropped out in 2022 after his mother filed an HIB (harassment, intimidation, bullying) complaint.
The district’s then-superintendent, Sarah Bilotti, later revealed that the school penalized six pupils for violating its HIB policies. The student’s mother then met with school administrators, urging them to implement a plan to combat racist bullying at the school.
The school’s then-principal, Jeanene Dutt, allegedly answered “no.”
In response to the lawsuit, Dutt, who is now the superintendent of the North Warren Regional School District, said in a statement: “[O]ut of respect for the students’ confidentiality rights, we are not at liberty to comment in the press beyond stating that we respectfully disagree with the claims and look forward to defending ourselves in court.”