Two California teens booted from their elite Catholic school for wearing blackface have been awarded more than $1 million after proving the viral selfie was a green acne face mask.
A Santa Clara County jury gave the award along with tuition reimbursement to the pair kicked out of Saint Francis High School in Mountain View, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“Our primary goal was to clear [our clients’] names,” the teens’ lawyer, Krista Baughman, told the outlet. “It was quite clear the jury believed these were innocent face masks.”
According to the Chronicle, in August 2017, a boy identified as A.H. put on a green mask his mom bought that was intended to cure severe acne. He snapped a bathroom selfie with another boy in a white acne mask.
The following day A.H., a friend referred to as H.H., and an unnamed third boy rubbed green medication on their faces in solidarity and took a picture of themselves.
Their selfie went viral three years later when it was found and widely shared during the height of the Black Lives Matter protests following the 2020 death of George Floyd.
The jury verdict in the case rejected the teens’ primary legal claims — defamation and breach of contract — and also determined the administration didn’t interfere with their free-speech rights, Frank Hughes, the father of one of the students, told the Chronicle.
The school is “exploring legal options,” the Chronicle reported.
Hughes wound up moving his family to Utah so his son would be eligible to play football during his senior year, the Chronicle reported. And following Monday’s verdict, Saint Francis must reimburse him for moving and living expenses.
Fran Beyer ✉
Fran Beyer is a writer with Newsmax and covers national politics.
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