An Illinois teenager has been sentenced to two years of probation for posting a Craiglist ad in which he offered to sell a Black classmate as a “slave.”
The teen, who was a 14-year-old freshman at Naperville Central High School at the time of the incident in 2019, must also complete 100 hours of community service, after pleading guilty to two counts of felony hate crime and one count of misdemeanor disorderly conduct, Chicago’s CBS affiliate reported Wednesday.
“The boy will also be required to undergo individual and family counseling as deemed necessary, and to submit a DNA sample to the State of Illinois,” according to the station. “On Nov. 14, 2019, the boy took a photo of his classmate while at school and then posted an ad on Craigslist with the photo, and the caption, ‘Slave for sale (Naperville)’ along with an offensive racial slur, prosecutors said.”
The teen’s Craigslist post also referred to his Black classmate a “Hardworkin thick n*gger slave.”
“Images of the listing, which has since been removed from Craigslist, sparked widespread outrage in recent days, reopening wounds for the community that is still recovering after a separate racist episode at a local Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant in October made national headlines,” the Washington Post reported in November 2019.
A defense attorney for the teen claimed that he was friends with the victim, who was also a freshman at the same high school. But the victim’s mother disputed the attorney’s statement.
“They used to be friends, they are not anymore,” the mother told WGN, adding that their friendship soured when the white student began teasing her son, “calling him dumb, making fun of his skin color, saying ‘Shut up slave.'”
According to his mother, the Black victim didn’t know the Craigslist ad had been posted.
“He was the butt of jokes for days,” she said, adding that her son was heckled by other students who told him, “I’ll buy you for a dollar.”
Among the Fray 