Teen sues Washington Post for accusing him of racist acts, Latest World News - The New Paper
World

Teen sues Washington Post for accusing him of racist acts

This article is more than 12 months old

COVINGTON, KENTUCKY: A high school student from Covington, Kentucky, sued the Washington Post for defamation on Tuesday, claiming the newspaper falsely accused him of racist acts and instigating a confrontation with a Native American activist in a January videotaped incident at the Lincoln Memorial.

The lawsuit, filed in US District Court in Kentucky by Covington Catholic High School student Nicholas Sandmann, 16, seeks US$250 million (S$340 million) in damages, the amount that Mr Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com and the world's richest person, paid for the Post in 2013.

The lawsuit claims that the newspaper "wrongfully targeted and bullied" the teen to advance its bias against President Donald Trump because Sandmann is a white Catholic who wore a Make America Great Again souvenir cap on a school field trip to the March for Life anti-abortion rally in Washington DC on Jan 18.

The Washington Post's vice-president for communications Kristine Coratti Kelly said: "We are reviewing a copy of the lawsuit and we plan to mount a vigorous defence."

In a photo that went viral from the incident, Sandmann is seen standing face to face with Native American activist Nathan Phillips. Sandmann stares smiling at him while Phillips sings and plays his drum. The incident sparked outrage on social media.

In a statement, Sandmann's Atlanta-based lawyer, Lin Wood, said additional similar lawsuits would be filed in the weeks ahead. - REUTERS

WORLD