Former First Lady Michelle Obama’s brother and his wife are suing a private school in Milwaukee alleging that he refused to allow his two children to re-enroll after they expressed concern that racism and misconduct at school had not been satisfactorily addressed.
In a civil lawsuit filed in the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, Craig and Kelly Robinson are accusing Milwaukee University School of terminating the re-enrollment contracts for their 9- and 11-year-olds for the 2021-2022 school year after the couple complained that teachers treated students of color and students who were underrepresented socioeconomically unfairly.
According to the lawsuit filed Monday, the school did not offer the supportive and inclusive learning environment it had promised in its enrollment contracts with the Robinsons. The children had attended preschool through 12th grade for about five years, the Robinsons said Tuesday in an interview with The Associated Press.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages and a jury trial.
USM said in a statement that the enrollment decision had nothing to do with its complaints of inequality or discrimination. The independent school, with a campus that stretches from Milwaukee to the nearby suburb of River Hills, enrolls about 1,100 students each year.
The Robinsons allege that their children’s behavior indicated a broader pattern of USM insensitivity toward students and students of color who were underrepresented socioeconomically for years.
Craig Robinson said the boys had been heterosexual students in school and never had any problems.
“We raised issues and our children were evicted,” he said.
The school did not address racial epithets and other inappropriate behaviors on campus, the Robinsons said, without providing details.
The Robinsons said that when boys were learning virtually at home due to the pandemic, they realized that racial and ethnic stereotypes appeared in the assignments.
It gave parents a “bird’s eye view of learning,” Kelly Robinson said.
“We were collaborating with the school and sharing our concerns, how the school could be better off with the curriculum, communicating with families and eliminating prejudice,” he said.
In a letter to the Robinsons, USM school principal Steve Hancock told the couple that they had “repeatedly engaged in disrespectful and demanding communications with and about our teachers and administrators.”
In an April email, Hancock wrote that “despite our continued efforts and requests, you continue to interact directly with USM fifth-grade teachers and administrators in a manner that is inconsistent with trust. and the school’s core values, even through numerous emails and texts, and conversations that are disrespectful and deflated. “
The Robinson boys were in fifth and third grade at the time.
“It has only become more apparent that there has been a complete rupture in your family’s trust and respect for USM,” Hancock wrote.
The boys have been “traumatized” by the loss of their relationships and friendships at USM, the only school they had ever attended, but now find themselves in a thriving and supportive environment, Kelly Robinson said.
Hancock issued a statement Tuesday afternoon, but declined to accept calls about the lawsuit.
“We highly value the privacy and confidentiality of members of our community and cannot comment on the specifics of matters involving threatened or pending litigation. However, we can tell you that USM’s enrollment decisions had nothing to do with it. with complaints of injustice or discrimination and we intend “We cannot and will not tolerate persistently disrespectful, harassing or harassing behavior directed at our devoted teachers and administrators and workers,” he said in part.
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