Posted in Personal Injury Lawyer
A Texas Christian University student, identified only as Jane Doe No. 1, has filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging she was harassed, falsely imprisoned and discriminated against by faculty members during a 2019 trip to Washington D.C.
Doe said she was heavily enticed to attend the summer program in D.C. even though she ranked it last on her preferences. She said that she and another student were chosen to attend the trip as a way to tokenize the students and bolster the university’s reputation as a diverse educational institution.
Before she left for the trip, Doe said that Diane Snow, the dean of the John V. Roach Honors College, accused her of being unpatriotic for being unsure about a White House visit that may have included a visit with the president.
Snow allegedly told Doe that she was lucky to go on the trip and threatened to make her repay the honors college for the grant she received for the trip if she didn’t go to D.C.
According to the lawsuit, faculty members made racist remarks and belittled Doe during the trip. Doe claims her two roommates took both the beds in the hotel room and forced her to sleep on the couch.
Doe said that the air quality in D.C. aggravated her asthma and she developed foot blisters after having to walk several miles a day. She claims she was repeatedly assaulted by Snow, who would shove her and push her to walk faster when she was in pain and ignored her health concerns during the trip.
During a visit to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Snow allegedly told Doe that she could “experience the feeling of being crowded into a slave cargo ship” in one of the museum’s exhibits.
The suit claims that Doe thought about killing herself on her 20th birthday. She called the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and did not wind up attempting to take her own life.
Doe informed the school’s Title IX coordinator about her mental state and said that she planned to file a formal complaint when she returned to campus. When Snow found out about this, she reportedly violently slammed the door in Doe’s face in the middle of a conversation.
Doe received a no credit grade for the class. She is requesting a jury trial.