A family suing Kamehameha Schools over its admissions policy is asking the federal court to keep their identities hidden amid death threats.
The private school is challenging the request. KS attorneys pleaded their case during a Monday federal court hearing in Honolulu, wanting the identities of the mother and daughter revealed so they can build their defense after the anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions sued the school last year over its admissions policy giving preference to Native Hawaiians.
The family's lawyers told the courts that their identities need to remain anonymous after online threats emerged when the group’s lawsuit went public. The mother and daughter are publicly known by the initials B.P. and I.P.
The threats were intense. Edward Blum, the Virginia-based anti-affirmative action group’s founder, has gotten some of the brunt of the online backlash. Comments were directed at his Jewish heritage, and one read, “This Edward guy needs to disappear through a ‘tragic accident.’” Blum also received voicemails containing profanity and threats of violence.
Cameron Norris, an attorney representing SFFA and the families, said in court that the nonprofit’s lead attorney, Jesse Franklin-Murdock, was anonymously sent a bag of what appeared to be feces.
The school’s attorney, Joachim Cox, said that those comments are “unwelcomed.”
KS lawyers have argued that they need to have the names public because they need to build their defense, and added that it's not their intent for harm to come to these families. They also need to look into the families during the discovery process.
While no decision was made during a Monday federal court hearing, federal Judge Micah Smith will most likely make a decision in the coming weeks. No court date has been set yet.
“We appreciate the opportunity to present our arguments to the court today,” Cox said in a written statement. “Our message is simple: for 140 years, Kamehameha Schools has honored the vision of Princess Pauahi through our admissions policy, which is grounded in state and federal law and upheld by federal courts, including the Ninth Circuit.”
“We will vigorously defend her private will and wishes, and are confident that the facts and the law support our case,” he continued.
Outside the federal court building, KS alumnus Jacob Aki was listening via a call-in. He said people tuned in and were saying “negative comments” unmuted. He said those comments through the call-in were "directed at the lawyers."
Aki emphasized that he doesn’t agree with the hostile comments, but added that the names of the plaintiffs should be revealed.
“I can understand the emotion that this case is going to bring out in every single one of us, but we need to remember that these emotions and the way we respond are going to have consequences,” Aki said. “We need to maintain kapu aloha because this is going to be a long battle.”
Read the filed lawsuit here.
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