A California Catholic school has been ordered by a court to pay out to two students it expelled after wrongly accusing them of blackface.
A California Catholic school has been ordered by a court to pay out to two students it expelled after wrongly accusing them of blackface.
Two teens who were expelled from a private school for “blacking up” have won a US$1 million ($1.6 million) payout after they proved they were wearing an acne face mask.
The two teens who went to elite Saint Francis High School in California were only 14 at the time when they, and a third boy who went to another school, decided to put a dark green acne mask on their face and take a photo.
For years nothing came of the photo until it re-emerged, landing the two boys in trouble.
The photo went viral in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement that followed, amid accusations it was racist.
The court heard how other students and parents believed the photo was a racist joke and put pressure on the school to take action.
A Santa Clara County jury ruled this week that the school did not give them due process before expelling them.
The pair are now set to receive $500,000 each and will have their $70,000 tuition reimbursed.
The teens’ lawyer, Krista Baughman, said: “It was quite clear the jury believed these were innocent face masks. They are young kids, their internet trail is going to haunt them for the next 60 years. Now they don’t have to worry about that.”
“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.
“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.”
The acne mask the boys used that was mistaken as a black face prank.
One of the boy’s parents also spoke outside court to local media: “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.”
Their initial lawsuit wanted $20m in damages, claiming they were defamed and had their free speech violated, but this was rejected by the court.
The school was found guilty of failing to do a proper investigation and breach of an oral contract.
The school has said that they ‘respectfully disagree’ with the decision and are exploring other legal options, including an appeal.
