Bella Ivory, a teacher at Beverly Hills High School, is alleging that her reports of racism on campus since 2022 have been ignored. She has since taken legal action.
“When a school allows racism to flourish, children learn the wrong thing, and that breeds hatred,” said attorney Brad Gage, who has highlighted several incidents as evidence of an alleged toxic environment at the school.
One video shows a student filming feces on the floor of a bathroom before zooming in on a racist comment scrawled on the wall. Another clip features two female students mocking Black students in the school cafeteria. “Let’s take a minute to appreciate how nice, beautiful, and clean our cafeteria looks right now. Now let’s fast-forward to lunch,” one of the girls says. The video then cuts to Black students eating in the cafeteria. The girls reappear to comment, “This is disgusting… I’m repulsed.”
“It’s clear what it signifies,” Gage said. “They are associating the presence of Black students with the cafeteria being dirty. That is the epitome of racism.”
Ivory recounted an incident that allegedly took place on Election Day when a group of students wearing MAGA hats and carrying a Trump flag paraded through the school. “They were shouting profanities like ‘F*** Kamala,’” Ivory said, referencing Vice President Kamala Harris, who is of Black and South Asian descent. “The profanity combined with students congregating in front of my classroom increased my fears and those of the Black students locked inside with me.” Ivory said the group attempted to enter her classroom, heightening the tension.
Gage has filed a formal complaint with the Beverly Hills Unified School District on Ivory’s behalf. He plans to escalate the case with a lawsuit, citing “discrimination, harassment, retaliation, racial comments, and physical threats.” He says the school needs to address these issues adequately.
The Beverly Hills Unified School District (BHUSD) has stated it is investigating all claims of racism and harassment to ensure a safe and inclusive environment for all students.