Most people would probably agree that the past several years haven’t been easy for Kanye West. The superstar, who was once known more for his hit music than anything else, has serious mental health issues, went through a very contentious divorce from ex Kim Kardashian (which was finally settled in late November 2022), has had a number of public outbursts which have led to a major loss of his business deals, and over the past year alone has become embroiled in a shocking number of lawsuits. Now, he’s faced with yet another about conditions at his school and how he treated staff.
What Does The New Lawsuit About Kanye West’s School Say?
If you’ve been paying attention to news about the “Gold Digger” rapper when it comes to the many lawsuits he’s involved with, you will probably know that he’s already being sued by some former Donda Academy employees, who alleged that he banned forks and made other surprising claims. Now, a former assistant principal who worked that school’s predecessor, Yeezy Christian Academy, as well as Donda, Isaiah Meadows, has filed suit claiming he was suspended and then fired after making complaints about conditions at the institution.
His attorney, Ron Zambrano (who also represents the plaintiffs from the earlier lawsuit), told NBC News:
It is just absolutely egregious what is going on at this school. The unlawful and retaliatory behavior by Mr. West and the school directors have now been documented multiple times by other former employees who never even worked together but all experienced the same horrendous treatment and witnessed the same serious health, safety and education code violations, while all were subjected to the same fate — wrongful termination — and we plan to hold them accountable.
The suit was filed on Thursday, July 6 in Los Angeles Superior Court, and adds a number of troubling allegations to those already levied against West and others in charge at his learning institution. Meadows is claiming breach of contract, alleging that after he complained about several safety, health, and additional problems at the academy, he was given a suspension, then his pay was docked, and then he was fired in August 2022, two weeks before the start of the fall semester.
Meadows, who began working there in late 2020, claims that YCA had wiring issues which led to an electrical fire near where the students ate, a septic tank that overflowed on a regular basis, a glassless skylight, and no hot water. He also reported that officials agreed to pay the rent for the home he lived in near the learning center, but never did, leaving him with a bill worth “tens of thousands of dollars.”
Once the school became Donda Academy and moved to a new location in August 2021, Meadows claims that the problem of an overflowing septic system continued, as well as the new property having no electricity for the first few months of the school year, and no glass in the windows (though mesh curtain were later installed). He says he brought the issues up with West directly, as well as a former administrator.
The educator is seeking an undisclosed amount for emotional distress, unpaid wages, and loss of earnings, along with other things. West (who’s named as a defendant along with Donda Academy and Yeezy Christian Academy), his attorney, and co-defendants haven’t responded to the suit as of this writing, but seeing as how his lawyer asked for the previous suit against the musician regarding his school to be dismissed, it’s not unlikely that a similar response will come for this filing before too much longer.
