Whitefish Bay parent alleges discrimination against her child in federal lawsuit

Whitefish Bay High School | Photo via Village of Whitefish Bay

In Whitefish Bay, the mother of a local high school student has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, alleging that her child was discriminated against by school district staff. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, accuses Whitefish Bay School District administrators of taking unfair and racially biased disciplinary actions against the African American teen — identified as “K.K” in the filing. The suit alleges that after a group of white students had taken to bullying the teen, they accused K.K. of “ a highly problematic and deeply damaging accusation,” according to  a press release by Wisconsin Education Law and Policy Hub . A suspension, encounter with the Whitefish Bay Police Department and tarnished disciplinary record followed for the freshman football player, according to the lawsuit.

“For almost a year now, I and my family have been fighting to clear my son’s name and correct this manifest injustice,” said K.K.’s mother, Shaneeka White, in a statement. “The district and its administrators have stereotyped us, ignored us, misrepresented us, and tried to intimidate us, but we are not backing down. We are pursuing this lawsuit to obtain justice for our family and to bring about a fairer and safer Whitefish Bay School District for all students of color.”

The lawsuit, filed against the Whitefish Bay School District, former district superintendent John Thompson, high school principal Amy Levek, and former assistant principal Julie Henningsen, accuses school administrators of violating constitutional provisions concerning equal protections, due process and free speech guaranteed to White and her child.

According to the complaint, K.K. began experiencing problems with other students after ending a romantic relationship with another student. After the breakup, both K.K. and a student he asked out to homecoming allegedly began receiving “harassing text messages” from other students. K.K.’s mother, White, attempted to raise the issue with school administrators multiple times, but nothing was done. The complaint states that White also attempted to talk to the parents of the teens harassing K.K., saying the stress had begun to affect K.K’s experience in school. White was allegedly told by school administrators that nothing could be done because the text messages were taking place outside of school.

Later, during a confrontation between White and the family of the students bullying K.K., one of the other parents allegedly made a gun threat toward White. Afterward, several people involved were questioned by Whitefish Bay school staff, who told White she was wrong to have directly interacted with the other student’s parents. White then filed unsuccessful discrimination complaints with the school board.

In the meantime, the bullying continued. K.K. said he was mocked for the way his hair looked, and that students told  the principal that K.K. had threatened them and instigated a fight during a football parade. After that report was made, principal Levek called the police department without first informing K.K. or his mother of the accusations. The lawsuit alleges that Levek informed Sgt. Daniel Rossman — who recorded their conversation with a body camera — about the confrontation at the football game involving a gun threat, but failed to mention that White was on the receiving end of that threat.

As Levek told Rossman more about White, the police sergeant said, “I know who that is.” In body camera footage which was been made public , Levek tells Rossman, “I mean, all of these families, there’s just a couple families that just continually…” When Rossman mentions, “another group down there, like two girls,” Levek confirms that, “that’s his cousins.” Levek later adds, “we’re as tired of it as you guys.”

The lawsuit alleges that these statements show  prejudice. According to Department of Public Instruction statistics provided in the complaint, only about 2.7% of Whitefish Bay’s overall population, and 3% of its student body, are African American. While much of Whitefish Bay consists of single family homes, a section of the city contains apartments and townhomes. This neighborhood is where many Black residents of Whitefish Bay live, including White and her child. According to suspension data released as part of the lawsuit — which is reported as a ratio to the number of enrolled students — suspensions for Black students appear disproportionately high at 15.3%, compared to 2.9% for Hispanics, and 1.1% for white students.

White is continuing to fight  what she feels is discrimination by the school district with the federal lawsuit. “Through their incredible tenacity in working through the District’s lengthy and burdensome appeals process, my clients have gathered a huge body of evidence showing the specific strategies the Whitefish Bay School District uses to perpetuate racial inequities, suppress criticism, and protect administrators at student expense,” said the family’s attorney, Elisabeth Lambert. “We look forward to showing the Court and community how institutional racism works at a nuts-and-bolts level in Whitefish Bay schools.”

Bay Bridge , a Whitefish Bay organization with a mission of raising awareness of racial and cultural bias in the community, also said in a statement that, “Historically, the district has not been transparent about its documented racial issues and disparities in the discipline process. We hope this unfortunate lawsuit moves the needle toward accountability and much-needed healing in our community.”

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