According to a lawsuit filed by a family against a prominent Southern California school, authorities permitted their Black kid to endure years of racial harassment from other pupils.
The victim is only known as John Doe, a 17-year-old student at Westlake Village’s private boarding school, Oaks Christian School, which offers fourth through twelfth grade instruction.
The teenager said that since starting school in 2018, he has been subjected to widespread racial discrimination and emotional abuse from his peers. In one case, complaint documents claim that students disputed the value of the Black student during a fictitious slave auction that was held in the cafeteria.
Another episode involved his friends threatening to lynch him on a given day and time.
“I had no idea what it was until someone brought it to my attention and honestly, it was just kind of like a knock to my chest because these are people who I’m around,” according to the teen. “But it’s just appalling to hear. Why me? What did I do?”
The teenager stated that he was frequently singled out and subjected to racial epithets. According to the victim, some bullies even downloaded a smartphone app that made a whipping sound, which would start playing whenever a Black student passed by.
According to court records, the teenager “frequently chose to eat lunch in classrooms to avoid harassment because they felt unsafe in common areas and were forced to wait for hallways to clear.”
According to his family, the teen was called aside one day to talk about an impending lecture in U.S. history that will touch slavery because the vice principal was aware of the problems.
According to court filings, the victim was told that the subject would be “difficult” and that he should “brace for it” since there were “jokesters” in the class who might say something improper.
The family of the victim has sued the school for an undisclosed amount of money, claiming that campus officials failed to take adequate action to safeguard students and put an end to the harassment.
“Other Black students reported similar experiences of being targeted based on racial stereotypes,” as per the lawsuit. “Since this relentless behavior went unchecked, it fostered a toxic atmosphere where racism became normalized and students felt empowered to see how far they could terrorize [the victim] and other Black students. This relentless behavior went unchecked, it fostered a toxic atmosphere at Oaks Christian School where racism became normalized, and students felt empowered to see how far they could terrorize [the victim] and other Black students.”
Oaks Christian officials claimed in a statement released Friday that they were initially informed about the alleged racial harassment on October 27, 2023.
Three students were expelled from the school permanently after an investigation.
“Over the course of the past year, the school has frequently monitored to ensure there have been no other concerns or incidents involving the student who brought the issue to the school’s attention last year,” as per the statement.
Administrators stated that no more incidences have been reported to the school after the October 2023 report, and they had spoken with the victim’s parents multiple times.
The Los Angeles Times reports that the annual cost of tuition at the school is approximately $42,000. The offspring of Will Smith, Wayne Gretzky, and Joe Montana are among the noteworthy alumni of the school.
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“I want to see an entire cultural change,” the teen stated. “I want to see an effort to promote an inclusive and Christ-like environment for everyone.”
The teen, who is a senior this year, stated that he intends to stay on campus to complete the academic year before graduating and going to college to study business.
“As a Christian school, Oaks Christian School operates with policies and procedures consistent with Biblical standards and in accordance with a Biblical worldview,” administrators stated in a statement issued Friday. “Oaks Christian School does not tolerate racism or discrimination among its faculty, staff, or student communities.”
