EAST ST. LOUIS — A Marion High School student claims her track coach made a racially discriminating comment and then retaliated against her on social media for reporting the alleged discrimination.
Marilyn Tucker, as parent and next friend of A.T., a minor filed a complaint Sept. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois against Marion Community School District 2 Board of Education and Sara Baker alleging violation of the Illinois Human Rights Act.
According to the plaintiffs' complaint, A.T., was a student at Marion High School and was in the tenth grade during the 2020-2021 school year. The plaintiffs allege that on April 21, 2021, A.T., took her shoes off and ran barefoot during track practice. The plaintiffs claim Baker, the girl's track coach, yelled out to her "barefoot African American from a third-world country" in front of her peers and track teammates.
The plaintiffs claim A.T., suffered embarrassment, humiliation, mental anguish and emotional distress. They further claim that A.T., faced retaliation as a result of her and her mother reporting the discrimination including being removed from the track team and being harassed and criticized on the track team's social media sites maintained by Baker.
The plaintiffs seek monetary relief of more than $500,000, trial by jury and all other proper relief. They were represented by Natalie Lorenz of Mathis Marifian & Richter in Belleville.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois case number 21-1181