Two teens who sued their elite California Catholic school after they were expelled over a “blackface” selfie, which was actually a skincare mask, have won a massive payout of over $1 million.
In 2017, when the boys were 14, they applied a face mask purchased by one of their mothers,
which turned from light to dark green once dry.
The students said they took a selfie with the skin treatment in solidarity with a friend suffering from severe acne, the Los Angeles Times reported.
St. Francis High School in California was just forced to pay 2 boys $500k each.
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) May 9, 2024
The woke school expelled the two teens for "wearing racist blackface" in a selfie.
Turns out, it was acne treatment. pic.twitter.com/LO1RPF5ALe
However, the picture resurfaced in 2020 during the Black Lives Matter protests following the death of George Floyd.
The photo went viral on social media, prompting Saint Francis High School to expel the boys.
The lawsuit said that school officials did not offer the boys a hearing nor consider any evidence.
Breitbart reported:
“A Santa Clara County jury agreed with the teens this week that the school was in breach of an oral contract and did not afford them due process before kicking them out, the Times reported. The students’ other claims, including defamation and violation of free speech, were rejected by the court on Monday.”
Each teen was awarded $500,000, and an additional tuition reimbursement of about $70,000.
“This case is significant not only for our clients but for its groundbreaking effect on all private high schools in California, which are now legally required to provide fair procedure to students before punishing or expelling them,” said Krista Baughman, a member of the students’ legal team.
“The jury rightly confirmed that Saint Francis High School’s procedures were unfair to our clients and that the school is not above the law.”
A.H.’s family celebrated that the teens’ names will be “cleared” in a statement to the outlet.
“We want to sincerely thank the jury and the court system for helping our boys and our families find justice, which now paves the way for their names to be cleared for things they never did.”
However, representatives for Saint Francis said they “respectfully disagree with the jury’s conclusion as to the lesser claim regarding the fairness of our disciplinary review process,” and are “exploring legal options” such as appealing the verdict.
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