GREENDALE, WI — Chanese Knox, a junior at Greendale High School in Wisconsin, has been unjustly suspended instead of her schoolmate who called her the n-word. She admitted they got into an argument, but she says it was because she was defending herself after another student deliberately hurled the racial slur at her.
Last month, Chanese was suspended for one day after she and another student got into an argument. She said the white student was the one who started it and threw the n-word at her, yet she was the one who was punished.
Moreover, school officials called the police for the incident even though Knox never laid a hand on the other student.
“How could you suspend the victim of a racial slur?” Chanese’s mother, Diannia Merriett, told CBS58. She added that the incident had caused trauma to her daughter and her grades suffered from the suspension as well.
“It’s a struggle every morning,” Chanese said noting that it wasn’t the first time someone called her the n-word.
Chanese led a protest with her friends, saying that the students at the school were openly racist and it’s making them uncomfortable.
“You have people that will just say [the n-word] freely in the hallways and not realize the magnitude the word has,” senior Yaminah Powell told CBS58, as fellow senior Symone McLain also said, “I shouldn’t have to be afraid to come to school because I feel like I’m going to get angry because somebody’s saying something racist.”
Her mom has met with the school officials, but she was disappointed by their actions.
Dr. Gary Kiltz, the school superintendent claimed they could not elaborate on the incident due to “student privacy laws.” In a statement, he said, “Greendale Schools is committed to the safety and well-being of all students. District administration takes every student, family and staff concern seriously and investigates all matters brought to our attention. Threats hate speech and harassment have no place in our school community.”
Kiltz added that they are investigating seriously regarding the incident. He said they already took the appropriate actions involving the students and they are working on ensuring the safety of Knox and her mother.
However, her mom said the response is insincere. She is demanding an apology from the school district and for her daughter’s suspension to be overturned.
