Michelle Obama's brother, sister-in-law settle discrimination lawsuit against school

In 2022, former first lady Michelle Obama's brother and his wife filed a discrimination lawsuit against a Milwaukee school, kicking off a years-long legal battle.

According to Newsweek, Craig and Kelly Robinson have settled the racial bias lawsuit, issuing a statement that indicated that both sides came to a settlement.

At the core of the issue of the lawsuit, the couple claimed that after they complained of racial bias in the school and how it treated students of color, their sons' enrollment was canceled out of retaliation.

Their sons, who at the time were 9 and 11, were not enrolled for the 2021 to 2022 school year, sparking legal action.

The Robinsons apparently became aware of the racial bias during the pandemic when their sons were completing their assignments through remote learning.

Newsweek noted:

The couple's sons were in the third and fifth grades when their re-enrollment contracts were terminated. They had attended USM for roughly five years, the Robinsons told The Associated Press (AP) in an article from April 2022.

Craig Robinson said the boys were straight-A students and never got in trouble, according to the AP article.

Notably, at the time of the controversy, the school indicated that the non-renewal of the boys' enrollment had nothing to do with the complaint filed by the Robinsons.

Newsweek added:

The USM Head of School Steve Hancock, however, told the couple in a termination letter and in an email that the couple had repeatedly engaged in disrespectful communications with teachers and administrators.

Hancock insisted at the time that the cancellation of the children's enrollment contract was not triggered by the complaint and that the school did not engage in discrimination but added that he wouldn't stand for teachers and staff experiencing "persistently disrespectful, bullying, or harassing behavior."

One wonders if the Robinsons used their connection to Michelle Obama in an attempt to intimidate and bully the school into rethinking its decision.

The Robinsons' lawsuit against the school was dismissed earlier this week by Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Thomas McAdams.

Both sides said they regretted that the disagreement between the two parties resulted in the boys' removal from the school.

The Robinsons likely cleaned up, money-wise, as they were seeking unspecified monetary damages as a result of the dispute.

Details of the settlement were not disclosed.