Parents of a La Jolla middle-schooler are suing the San Diego Unified School District because a principal is falsely accusing their son of wearing blackface to a sporting event and punishing him for it, they told NBC 7.
NBC 7 spoke with the attorney and the child's dad who say not only is it all a misunderstanding but damaging to the student's future.
Daniel Ameduri said the black paint on his 13-year-old son's face in a photo taken at a high school football game last October landed him in trouble. The student was suspended from Muirlands Middle School and banned from any future sports events, according to Ameduri.
“They’re saying I did something called blackface, and I immediately googled it, and I saw what blackface was,” said Ameduri, as he recounted the moment he learned of the allegations from his son.
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Ameduri detailed how he tried to clear things up with the school principal after receiving the photo of his son, providing examples of similar paint worn during sporting events.
“The fans and everybody put this stuff on their face. That’s warrior paint. They sell it. You buy this stuff at Big 5 and Dick’s Sporting Goods,” Ameduri said.
He said he was sure that the principal would realize he confused paint, commonly worn in sports, with the racist slur.
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“And I’ll never forget it. Hand it to the principal, knowing this is proof that will vindicate my son as innocent, and he looks at me and he says that’s blackface,” Ameduri said.
He's now hired an attorney after he says the district denied his son's suspension appeal and for doubling down on their wrong accusations that his son wore blackface and had racist intent.
“We need to put a stop to it. Administrators need to get back to the job protecting children and doing investigating if you get a claim like this. Not just knee-jerk, trying to get rid of the problem or pat themselves on the back because they're taking a tough stand against racism,” attorney Karin Sweigart said.
Amederi and his attorney told NBC 7 they have asked for evidence that shows the harm or racist intent his son is accused of. For example, statements from other kids or parents, or cell phone videos from that night, but haven’t received anything.
“They have labeled this kid as a racist and the long-term ramifications are potentially real for him. This is not appropriate. Administrators are supposed to be in search of the truth," Sweigart said.
This father’s hope now is that through a lawsuit, the district will remove the suspension from his son's record.
The San Diego Unified School District declined to comment on pending litigation.
