Two parents from Sanford, Maine, are furious after they say their son's assistant principal called him a racial slur at school. Jessica Gouin andĀ Neil Jarrett claim that theirĀ 9-year-old son, Javon Jarrett, who is biracial, was called the N-word by the school administrator. When they called the school to complain, they were told that the assistant principal was trying toĀ "teach him a lesson" about bullying.
The incident happened on September 27, after the fourth-grader was sent to the principal for bullying another student.
The administrator later claimed that she used the term as a way to teach the boy a lesson about bullying.Ā
"If I called you [the N-word] how would you feel?" she allegedly asked him.
According to WKYT, Javon later went home fromĀ Willard Elementary School and told his parents that he had been called the racial slur — andĀ his father was furious. Jarrett called the school and demanded a meeting with the assistant principal, who immediately apologized.
"She said, 'Yes, I know I'm wrong. I did call your son a [expletive], and I wasn't thinking about the consequences at the time or what it would do to your child,'" the father recalled.
Superintendent Matthew Nelson defended the administrator and told the parents that she was attempting to teach Javon that words can hurt.
"We're trying to make an example and we failed in terms of being able to do that," Nelson said. "But there was no malice intended. It wasn't intentional in terms of that."
Boston.com reported that Nelson would not confirm the name of the assistant principal who spoke with Javon.
The parents say their son was targeted, and claim that the conversation has had terrible repercussions.
Jarrett said that when he went into the meeting with the assistant principal, she used the word again.Ā
"I was disappointed she did that,ā he said. āNow Iām worried about my kid going there.ā
His wife shared that Javon no longer wants to go back to school.Ā
"Heās going to remember this for the rest of his life,ā Gouin said. āHis principal called him this at school.ā
Nelson told WKYT that the assistant principal will undergo additional training, but Javon's parents argue that requirement isn't enough.Ā
"They're just going to brush off and keep it that way and maybe a couple years down the line, it's going to be the same thing," Jarrett said. "It may not be my kid but someone else's kid."
