Chicago mom files lawsuit alleging teachers bullied son before attempted suicide

A Chicago mother has filed a lawsuit against two elementary school teachers after her special needs son was allegedly harassed and physically assaulted by them, causing him to try to commit suicide, her lawsuit says.

—Whoopi Goldberg fires back at her ‘View’ co-host Meghan McCain who snaps, ‘So, I don’t get to talk’—

On Tuesday, Teirra Black said during a press conference that her 11-year-old son Jamari Dent was bullied by teachers and his classmates for at least a year at two different schools, Medgar Evers and Carter Woodson. Jamari, she said, had tolerated abusive treatment for at least a year before he tried to hang himself in his bedroom, ABC News reports.

Black said her son was called derogatory names like “stupid,” “dumb” and “retarded.”

The lawsuit which names the Chicago Board of Education and the teachers as defendants makes some several shocking claims by a teacher at Evers Elementary who allegedly called the boy, who is Black “dirty” and “nappy-headed.”

The teacher then allegedly asked if his “brillo hair was the reason he couldn’t read,” followed by laughter from the teacher and his classmates, the lawsuit claims.

According to the suit, In February 2018, the same teacher allegedly assaulted and injured Jamari.

Black then took matters into her own hands and transferred her son to Woodson Elementary however the bullied continued there, she claims.

Reportedly three teachers at Woodson assaulted Jamari, resulting in injuries on different occasions. The concerned mom said she cried to administrators for help but her pleas fell on deaf ears.

—Boston museum hires firm to investigate racism reports from Black students—

In Feb. 18, Black said Jamari tried to hang himself with a sheet in his bedroom. His little 9-year-old sister found him, she said. Black said doctors expect him to remain on a ventilator for the rest of his life.

Her attorney Michael Oppenheimer is also preparing to file a federal civil-rights lawsuit against Chicago Public Schools, ABC30 reported. Black lawsuit adds to two others filed by other parents of special needs students who are suing the school district over alleged bullying.

Oppenheimer has asked for the help of Chicago District Attorney Kim Foxx and the city’s new Mayor Lori Lightfoot to conduct various criminal investigations.

The school district released a statement about the lawsuit.

“The district has no tolerance for adults who harm or fail to protect students,” it read in part. “All allegations of bullying and student harm are taken seriously by the district, and we are fully committed to ensuring all students are supported and adults are held accountable.”