A former Utah student has filed a lawsuit against both the Davis School District and her former basketball coach for racial discrimination. According to ABC 4, Ebony Davis says that she experienced harassment on a regular basis, and even alleges that she was called the N-word while walking through the halls.
Davis’ lawyers, Wayne Caldwell and Aaron Bergman, claim that students would also ask for her an “N-word pass” so they could “supposedly use the n-word in addressing her without recourse.”
They also stated there was an incident when a student turned off the lights in the classroom and yelled, “Oh, where did Ebony go!” However, the district’s athletic director and coach of the girls’ varsity basketball, Robert Reisbeck, reportedly made things even worse.
The lawsuit states that Reisbeck would call money “white people’s problems” and remarked that Davis’ hair “does not count” toward her height when lining up from tallest to shortest.
When basketballs would hit Davis’ head during practices, Reisbeck is accused of saying, “Oh that doesn’t hurt her head she has cushioning.”
During Black History Month, Reisbeck allegedly remarked, “Oh, [Ms. Davis], it’s your month, we have to treat you special.” He is also accused of instructing other students to carry Davis to get drinks during Black History Month.
The suit also says that Davis was so devastated by the harassment that she allowed her grades to slip so she couldn’t play on the varsity team. Court documents state that an assistant coach noticed Davis was uncomfortable around Reisbeck.
However, attorneys assert that the assistant principal of the school did not immediately share their report to the District’s Office of Equity. Apparently, it took six weeks for the report to be made.
In 2021, the Department of Justice completed a two-year investigation into racial discrimination at the Davis School District. After the investigation, the school district entered a settlement agreement to take steps to stop racial harassment.
In her civil suit, Davis is seeking judgment for general damages as well as special damages. The amount of Ms. Davis’s damages will ultimately be determined at trial.