An Illinois teenager is facing two felony hate crime charges and one charge of disorderly conduct after allegedly posting a racist ad on Craigslist with the image of a Black classmate attached.
According to ABC News, the teen, who is a student at Naperville High School, allegedly took a photo of the classmate at school on Nov. 14, before uploading the image to an ad on Craiglist with the caption, “Slave for sale (Naperville).”
The ad also had a racial slur on it, police said.
“Every single person deserves the right to feel safe and welcome in our community, and this department will continue to strive to make that a reality by thoroughly investigating any allegations of hate crimes and bringing those found responsible to justice,” Naperville Police Chief Robert Marshall said, blasting the ad as “despicable” and “extremely offensive”. “I would like to express my appreciation to our school resource officer and supervisor who conducted a timely, thorough, detailed investigation.”
The DuPage County State’s Attorney, Robert B. Berlin, also had strong words about the alleged incident, noting that “anyone, regardless of age, accused of such disgraceful actions will be charged accordingly.”
The teen’s exact age was not released, nor was their name. However, the teen is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 18