Westlake Village, Calif. — A lawsuit has been filed against Oaks Christian School in Los Angeles County, alleging that students at this private educational establishment engaged in racially discriminatory behavior towards a Black student. The affluent school, known for its celebrity alumni and state-of-the-art facilities, is now under scrutiny for purported actions including a mock slave auction, racial harassment, and threats of violence against the student, identified only as John Doe in court documents.
The allegations in the lawsuit describe distressing episodes where students used a mobile application emitting whipping sounds as the Black student passed by and simulated a slave auction discussing the student’s potential market value. Other students reportedly made derogatory and racially charged comments involving fried chicken, while some threatened lynching. Seeking unspecified damages, the student’s family accuses Oaks Christian of negligence and claims the school violated California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act by not effectively addressing the discriminatory behavior.
In response to the accusations, Oaks Christian School acknowledged receiving a complaint about racial harassment in October last year. Following an investigation, the school reported that it took decisive action by permanently expelling three students involved in the misconduct. The school has stated that it has been proactive in monitoring the situation since the incident and has engaged multiple times with the student’s parents to address their concerns.
Despite these measures, the lawsuit portrays a pattern of sustained racial bullying throughout the student’s time at the school, starting as early as an eighth-grade trip to the Slave Memorial at Mount Vernon. According to the student, the harassment included deeply hurtful comments and led him to take measures such as waiting for hallways to clear and eating lunch in classrooms to avoid further abuse.
The administration’s efforts to handle prior incidents of harassment, as noted in the lawsuit, included a pre-emptive warning to the student to prepare for potentially offensive remarks ahead of a U.S. history class that would cover slavery. This action, according to the lawsuit, highlights a reactive rather than preventive approach to handling racial issues within the school.
Further complicating the school’s reputation, this lawsuit follows previous allegations that emerged during the George Floyd protests in 2020. An online petition and social media accounts also drew attention to past incidents of racism and sexism on campus, indicating a historical context of unease among students of color.
Oaks Christian School, which opened its doors in 2000, charges about $42,000 annually for tuition and is situated on an 18-acre campus with facilities including an Olympic-size swimming pool and a modern football stadium. Despite these amenities, the school, which has an 8% African American student body according to 2022 data from Niche, faces challenges in fostering an inclusive environment, a goal underscored by the head of school’s commitment in 2020 statements to combating racism actively.
The student at the center of these allegations is currently a senior and intends to complete his education at Oaks Christian. Despite the school’s efforts to address past misconduct, he feels that the promises of creating a non-racist and actively anti-racist culture have been unfulfilled.
This lawsuit underscores ongoing concerns regarding racism in prestigious private schools and raises broader questions about accountability and the effectiveness of anti-discrimination policies in educational environments.
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