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Pleasant Valley schools face lawsuit over racist TikTok video

The PV parents suing the district claim it caused their student emotional distress, fearing more acts of harm could occur.

RIVERDALE, Iowa — Parents of a Black Pleasant Valley student are suing the school district, the school board, superintendent Brian Strusz and high school principal Darren Erickson in relation to a racist video made by two White students. 

The video depicts one student in blackface. The video then shows the student in blackface as he is beaten by the other student with what appears to be a weapon resembling a golf club. Music with repeated racial slurs can be heard throughout the entirety of the video as the students continue to carry on violent acts toward the student in blackface.  

The TikTok was posted in January 2020. When it resurfaced back in December 2021, superintendent Brian Strusz sent an email to parents calling the video "racist" and "abhorrent."

The lawsuit claims the students in the video still attend Pleasant Valley and have, "recently made statements indicating they believe they will suffer no consequences."

The lack of response when the video was first posted in 2020 is what has caused the lawsuit to come to light. The plaintiffs claiming the video and the districts failure to respond appropriately is not providing a safe environment for its students. 

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The lawsuit says several students brought the video to the attention of administration when it was first posted but parents were not notified about it. 

In addition, the parents filing the lawsuit say their teen "continues to reasonably fear that acts of physical contact, physical harm, and/or insulting or offensive contact may be carried out immediately." 

The lawsuit also sites the school district's parent and student handbook which addresses its "opposition to the efforts of those who promote hatred, whether through words or deeds," something the plaintiffs say they directly violated by ignoring the video and failing to punish the students involved. 

News 8 reached out to the school district for comment, who said they cannot comment on pending litigation. 

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