Four Black students filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Friday (June 23) against the Effingham County School District in Georgia for allegedly nurturing a racist environment, the Associated Press reports.

According to the lawsuit, filed by the ACLU of Georgia on behalf of the students, a Black high school student identified by his initials “N.T.” alleges that an athletic director defended white students’ use of racial epithets “because Black students used racial language when talking to each other.”

In another example of alleged discrimination, “G.L.,” a Black girl, pointed to a double standard involving the school district’s dress code that requires students to keep their hair in natural colors.

According to G.L, a high school administrator sent her home for wearing red braids because “that’s not a natural color for your kind,” she recalled the administrator’s comment. But G.L. noted instances when white girls were allowed to attend school wearing their hair dyed purple and green.

“The young people bringing this lawsuit are seeking to remedy the wrongs within the Effingham County School District, so that they and other Black students no longer have to withstand pervasive racial discrimination and silencing of their free speech in order to get an education,” Cory Isaacson, legal director at the ACLU of Georgia, said in a statement.

“Our clients are standing up for their right to an equitable and non-hostile learning environment, and the ACLU of Georgia is proud to support them in this fight.”

Effingham County School Superintendent Yancy Ford declined to answer the AP’s questions about the allegations in the lawsuit but denied that the school district allows racial discrimination.

“I will continue to work toward ensuring all students in the District are able to enjoy a learning environment free from negative impacts of racial bias, prejudice, and discrimination,” Ford told the AP.

The school district, located in Southeast Georgia, west of Savannah, has faced other racial discrimination lawsuits.

In January, three Black high school students filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that challenged the ban on students wearing Black Lives Matter clothing on campus but permits the wearing of the confederate battle flag. The suit argued that the dress code violated the Civil Rights Act and the students’ constitutional rights to equal protection and free speech.