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Chicago School's Mock Slave Auction Sparks Outcry, No Discipline Details

5/19/2026

Summary

Story summary

Teachers released a year-old video of a student mock slave auction after district officials ignored complaints.
The February 2025 play “Journey Back to America” at Carver Military Academy cast Black students as enslaved people and Hispanic/Latino students as auctioneers.
Chicago Public Schools said the performance conflicted with district values and gave no disciplinary details.
Northwestern University professor Alvin Tillery said reenacting slavery lacked educational justification and called the scene very problematic.

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Story summary

Teachers released a year-old video of a student mock slave auction after district officials ignored complaints.
The February 2025 play “Journey Back to America” at Carver Military Academy cast Black students as enslaved people and Hispanic/Latino students as auctioneers.
Chicago Public Schools said the performance conflicted with district values and gave no disciplinary details.
Northwestern University professor Alvin Tillery said reenacting slavery lacked educational justification and called the scene very problematic.