The family of a former 8th grade student at St. Joseph School in Kentucky is suing the Catholic institution and the Diocese of Covington. The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 30, alleges that the young girl, who is Black, was forced to endure months of racial discrimination and harassment from the establishment.
The victim’s family lawyer, Jamir Davis, filed the suit in federal court and reported that the student was suffering from lasting mental health issues following “malicious abuse,” The Daily Beast reported.
“[The girl] is scarred for the rest of her life because of these incidents,” Davis said.
The lawsuit reported that the abuse began after the girl, who was the only Black student in the class, was called a racial slur by one of her classmates after she refused to give the other her answers on an assignment. The school administration allegedly did nothing when she reported the incident. According to The Daily Beast, the victim’s mother said the school told her they would investigate and discipline the student at fault but never did.
The racial harassment escalated when the young girl’s English teacher repeatedly used a racial slur while teaching a lesson.
The teacher said that while her own parents used the word all the time, she now had to “be careful who you say [n-word] around because you will be ex’ed out of society.”
Classmates of the Black student spoke up during class and even went to the administrator, but again, nothing was done.
The lawsuit was sparked after the same English teacher reportedly denied the girl communion while attending a school-sponsored mass.
The lawsuit names the church, the English teacher, the administration, and the diocese for being responsible for allowing the girl to be bullied due to her race, and the family is seeking statutory and punitive damages.
“This is the story of a brave, Black girl standing her ground against the biggest bully at her school, her teacher,” the lawsuit claimed.
However, a statement released by the Diocese
of Covington denounced racism and the discrimination brought up in the lawsuit. The statement read, “The teaching of the Catholic Church is clear: Racism is a moral evil. The Catholic Church and the Diocese of Covington work to oppose and root out racism wherever we encounter this radical evil, especially in our Christian minds and hearts.”RELATED CONTENT: Racist Video At California High School Prompts Student Walkout, Demands