Autistic 4th grader sues over 'Let's Make a Slave' lesson

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The boy, identified as John Doe and represented by his parents, is identified in the suit as an African American little boy with autism whose disability "involves not knowing whether to take statements literally and understanding context."

According to the lawsuit and as previously reported by FOX 17 News, the lesson was planned by a student-teacher from Vanderbilt University and approved by the class teacher.

The "lesson" centered around a speech by a plantation slave owner to white Virginia colonists on how to control slaves. Among other statements, the suit shows the speech included comparing African Americans to horses, tarring slaves, and setting them on fire.

The suit continues by being forced to hear the speech and go through the lesson, the boy was subjected to a "racially hostile environment" and he and his classmates were told to pretend they were actually slaves. "John Doe and classmates were told to pretend they were actual slaves, folding themselves under desks and pretending to seek freedom from slavery by being mailed away in a box," the suit states. "The students were instructed that if they moved, they would be caught and returned to a life of slavery."

“A student-teacher was dismissed and asked not to return to Waverly-Belmont as a result of teaching material that was not age appropriate or within the scope of sequence for the 4th grade class.