A lawsuit against a Township High School District 113 parent over things she posted in criticizing a teacher — for a social media post criticizing the Israeli military — has been dismissed, perhaps the final chapter in the legal saga of a controversy dating back to 2023.
Britnee Kenyon is the theater director at Deerfield High School. In 2023, Kenyon, who is Jewish, shared a post on her social media — which was being followed by some district students — from American author Ibram X. Kendi, who criticized the Israeli military in regards to the Israel-Hamas War and accused it of ethnic cleansing.
The post drew extensive backlash from some parents, and days later, then-board President Daniel Struck put out a statement to the community referencing and condemning Kenyon’s post. Kenyon was later reprimanded for her social media posts and alleged inappropriate online communications and behavior.
Struck would later resign in February 2024 in relation to the growing controversy, and Kenyon filed a lawsuit last year against the district, claiming a violation of her First Amendment rights.
In October, the district settled with Kenyon, paying her $200,000, reimbursing her more than $6,500 for fees paid to ADR Systems Inc. in connection with mediation, and crediting her 42 days of sick leave. As part of the agreement, the board denied all allegations of unlawful conduct, as did Kenyon.
But the legal saga took another turn because district parent Michelle Hammer Bernstein had been another defendant in the lawsuit and was not part of the settlement agreement. She had faced several accusations of defamation and invasion of privacy over her posts and statements online criticizing Kenyon, and allegedly pushing for Kenyon’s removal from the district.
Bernstein was represented by the American Center for Law and Justice, a conservative Christian-based legal organization.
The ACLJ framed the case as an issue of First Amendment rights, describing the lawsuit as retaliation against a parent attempting to, “engage school leaders and express their opinions concerning, among other things, teacher conduct and the improper indoctrination of students.”
According to documents from the United States District Court Northern District of Illinois, the case was terminated by a voluntary dismissal from the plaintiff, after filing a stipulation of dismissal signed by all parties, including Kenyon and Bernstein.
The dismissal of the lawsuit against Bernstein, which included no monetary exchange, was an “unequivocal victory,” an ACLJ representative said in a statement, “for Ms. Bernstein and for every parent who has ever feared speaking up about their children’s education.”
“While the legal matter has been resolved favorably, parents have both the right and the responsibility to stand up against antisemitism, especially in our schools,” the statement said. “The ACLJ remains committed to defending parents and citizens who face legal retaliation for exercising their fundamental constitutional rights.”
In a statement, Bernstein said she had been facing “huge financial risk and an unknown outcome,” but she “was not going to back down or be silenced.”
“The Holocaust began with propaganda targeted at youth,” she said. “‘Never again,’ are not just words We owe it to the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, the 1300+ innocent lives kidnapped, raped and murdered on October 7, and to every Jewish victim who fought for their lives to always speak truth — loudly, openly, and without fear.”
