Nephews of Michelle Obama Expelled from School; Their Parents are Suing for Racism

The nephews of Michelle Obama, who are between the ages of 9 and 11 years old, were expelled from their former school in Milwaukee after their parents, Craig and Kelly Robinson, allegedly raised concerns about the treatment of students of color.

Craig, the older brother of the former First Lady of the United States, said that their children were not allowed to go back to the University School of Milwaukee (USM), a well-known private school, as of the 2021 school year. In an interview with CNN, Craig said that they were shocked to receive a letter from the institution that effectively terminated the enrollment of their boys.

He said that the school's action was a retaliation because he and his wife have been raising issues about the unfair treatment of students of color. Craig and Kelly said that they noticed these issues, such as the racial and ethnic stereotypes in classroom instructions or insensitivity toward the students' socioeconomic status, in the virtual learning sessions during the pandemic lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

However, despite informing the school about their concerns, Kelly said that the school officials "didn't want to confront the actual issue." Instead, the parents got a letter stating that their sons would no longer be accepted into the school.

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'This Needs to Stop'

Craig and Kelly filed the lawsuit in April 2021 after their 11-year-old boy, who was in fifth grade, was expelled without any warning. After two months, they found out that their younger son, who was in third grade, would not be allowed to enroll in the next school year.

According to People, the family received the official termination letter from USM in June 2021. It cited that the Robinsons violated the School's Common Trust as partners of the institution.

The nephews of Obama started attending USM in 2016. Their father said they have been communicating their concerns to the school community, as they have done in the boys' previous schools, if they saw something that needs to be corrected.

Reports cited that Kelly filed at least two complaints via the school's Bias Incident Reporting System. The school acknowledged the complaints, but the lawsuit stated that no action was taken to address the issues.

The Robinsons filed the lawsuit because they want to hold USM accountable for their retaliation as they are not the only family affected by this decision. The father also said that there are members of the community who are against the school's decision.

"This needs to stop and change and this will help all students at the University School of Milwaukee," Craig said.

The Robinsons want a jury trial and also claim monetary damages. However, the parents said this will not be for their personal gain but to use the money for "initiatives designed to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in schools."

USM Issues a Statement

USM issued a statement to address the lawsuit. While it refused to comment on the specifics, the school implied that Craig and Kelly were "persistently disrespectful, bullying, or harassing" the school teachers and administrators, per NPR. 

The school said they were forced to take action against the Robinsons for creating an unsafe school environment. It stressed that removing the first lady's nephews was not because of bias or unfair treatment.

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