Emanuele Berry

Instead of disappearing, the story of mostly white high schoolers auctioning off their Black classmates in a secret slave auction, it got a lot of attention. At first, Nevaeh felt good talking about it. She got a lot of support. People reached out. She felt a sense of relief. But just as quickly as is happening in many parts of America, talking about racism in Traverse City led to backlash.

Instead of disappearing, the story of mostly white high schoolers auctioning off their Black classmates in a secret slave auction, it got a lot of attention. At first, Nevaeh felt good talking about it. She got a lot of support. People reached out. She felt a sense of relief. But just as quickly as is happening in many parts of America, talking about racism in Traverse City led to backlash.

Nevaeh speaking up set off other bigger conversations about racism in the community, which led to that heated school board meeting where some adults insisted Traverse City is not a racist place and that any discussion of racism causes division. But something that was more important to Nevaeh was the backlash she got from her peers.

Nevaeh speaking up set off other bigger conversations about racism in the community, which led to that heated school board meeting where some adults insisted Traverse City is not a racist place and that any discussion of racism causes division. But something that was more important to Nevaeh was the backlash she got from her peers.

Some kids started to get tired of seeing Nevaeh on the news, and to Nevaeh, it seemed almost irritated. She noticed a gradual change, even among some of her friends.

Some kids started to get tired of seeing Nevaeh on the news, and to Nevaeh, it seemed almost irritated. She noticed a gradual change, even among some of her friends.

This question, where do the people around me stand? It was a question that kept coming up again and again and again as the summer passed and the school year approached. In the fall, she went back to school in person for the first time since the incident. Nevaeh is a junior. She looked around and wondered, who are my friends? Who can I trust? Who thinks it's okay I was sold in a slave trade?

This question, where do the people around me stand? It was a question that kept coming up again and again and again as the summer passed and the school year approached. In the fall, she went back to school in person for the first time since the incident. Nevaeh is a junior. She looked around and wondered, who are my friends? Who can I trust? Who thinks it's okay I was sold in a slave trade?

Nevaeh thinks to herself, I can be friends with anybody. One of the kids who participated in the Snapchat slave trade, I'll call him Luke, they were texting right after the incident and again just before school started.

Nevaeh thinks to herself, I can be friends with anybody. One of the kids who participated in the Snapchat slave trade, I'll call him Luke, they were texting right after the incident and again just before school started.

They texted a little, but it wasn't the same. Luke's a chatterbox and a jokester, Nevaeh says. They were old friends. They've known each other since middle school. But she couldn't talk to Luke about what happened. It seemed like he just wanted to move past it without ever addressing it.

They texted a little, but it wasn't the same. Luke's a chatterbox and a jokester, Nevaeh says. They were old friends. They've known each other since middle school. But she couldn't talk to Luke about what happened. It seemed like he just wanted to move past it without ever addressing it.

Luke was the first friend Nevaeh was forced to make a decision about. Maybe she couldn't be friends with everyone. As the weeks passed, she started ignoring him. Like, if she sees him in the halls, she'd look at her phone, walk to the other side. Staying away from Luke meant she distanced herself from other friends. Like, her one friend I'll call Leah.

Luke was the first friend Nevaeh was forced to make a decision about. Maybe she couldn't be friends with everyone. As the weeks passed, she started ignoring him. Like, if she sees him in the halls, she'd look at her phone, walk to the other side. Staying away from Luke meant she distanced herself from other friends. Like, her one friend I'll call Leah.

I guess, let him go. So Nevaeh tries to navigate this new social landscape on her own. But it's not simple. Take this one time a couple months ago. Nevaeh was meeting Leah at a football game. She got to the stands, and Luke was there. Nevaeh had no idea he would be there.

I guess, let him go. So Nevaeh tries to navigate this new social landscape on her own. But it's not simple. Take this one time a couple months ago. Nevaeh was meeting Leah at a football game. She got to the stands, and Luke was there. Nevaeh had no idea he would be there.

The game started. Leah called a player trash for making a bad play. Then Luke, who's behind Nevaeh with his buddies, defends the player, mocks the girl who shouted, calling her mean, telling her he'd never say something so mean. It rung in Nevaeh's ears.

The game started. Leah called a player trash for making a bad play. Then Luke, who's behind Nevaeh with his buddies, defends the player, mocks the girl who shouted, calling her mean, telling her he'd never say something so mean. It rung in Nevaeh's ears.

Nevaeh didn't want to cause trouble for Luke. She wished him well. She just couldn't pretend that nothing happened. And she couldn't stop questioning a lot of her relationships, even her relationship with Katie. It was never clear to Nevaeh if Katie had participated in the chat. They were friends. Katie's the one who told her about the chat. It didn't make sense that she would have joined in.

Nevaeh didn't want to cause trouble for Luke. She wished him well. She just couldn't pretend that nothing happened. And she couldn't stop questioning a lot of her relationships, even her relationship with Katie. It was never clear to Nevaeh if Katie had participated in the chat. They were friends. Katie's the one who told her about the chat. It didn't make sense that she would have joined in.