Mississippi School District Ordered to Desegregate Its Schools

[Mockingbird]

Quote

 

 

A federal court has ordered a town in Mississippi to desegregate its high schools and middle schools, ending a five-decade-long legal battle over integrating black and white students.

 

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi told the Cleveland School District to consolidate the schools after rejecting two alternatives proposed by the district, saying they were unconstitutional.

 

“This victory creates new opportunities for the children of Cleveland to learn, play and thrive together,” Vanita Gupta, the head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said in a statement published on Monday.

 

The court’s ruling means the district’s middle school and high school programs will be combined for the first time in their more than century-long history.

 

The decision comes six decades after the United States Supreme Court declared in Brown v. Board of Education that “separate but equal has no place” in public schools. Tuesday is the 62nd anniversary of the landmark decision.

 

The Justice Department said the district court found that the school district had operated an “inadequate dual system” in Cleveland, a Mississippi Delta town in the western part of the state with a population of about 12,000.

 

“Although no court order can right these wrongs, it is the duty of the district to ensure that not one more student suffers under this burden,” the court said in its opinion.

 

[...]

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/18/us/cleveland-mississippi-school-district-desegregate.html?_r=0

 

[The Rev]

... What is this, the 1960s?!?  How is this still happening??

[+devHead Subscriber²]

Nothing like ignorant, racist, white people  - I would imagine there's a bumper crop of them in that town in Mississippi.

[+JHBrown Subscriber¹]

Welcome to 2016, Cleveland School District. How in the world was this still going on?

[Jim K Global Moderator]

Say whaaaa?  This was still a thing?  

[Mockingbird]

7 minutes ago, The Rev said:

... What is this, the 1960s?!?  How is this still happening??

 

Just now, JHBrown said:

Welcome to 2016, Cleveland School District. How in world was this still going on?

...back to the future

 

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

This was done a long long time ago. ^^^Wrong State.

[Mockingbird]

Just now, Gary7 said:

This was done a long long time ago. ^^^Wrong State.

I know. I was talking about the symbolic meaning.

[Dick Montage]

I'm literally sat here aghast that in 2016:

1) This still happened

2) At 38 years of age this is the first I hear about it

[PGHammer]

Just now, JHBrown said:

Welcome to 2016, Cleveland School District. How in the world was this still going on?

I can, in fact, tell you - for largely the same reason it happened in greater Boston in the 1980s, and in my own home county of Prince George's in the same decade - where folks move to, and who does the moving.

Housing construction DOES impact school districts - this is hard data going back to the ORIGINAL court orders on desegregation.

Did the court look at that data, or basically assign guilt without data?

All too often, a school district cannot directly cause school segregation - and this is especially true since - believe it or not - 1960; if anything, factors totally outside the control of said board are the determining factor.  (For instance, how big is the school district?  Is it a partial-county district (such as the Dallas Independent School District in the county of the same name in Texas - it does NOT comprise the whole of Dallas County, TX). Even if it DOES cover the whole county (such as Charles or Prince George's County in Maryland), how are regions of a district impacted by zoning decisions?  (That was the finding of fact in both Boston AND Prince George's County - the school system was, in fact, blameless; the original decision was found to be in error.)

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

2 minutes ago, PGHammer said:

I can, in fact, tell you - for largely the same reason it happened in greater Boston in the 1980s, and in my own home county of Prince George's in the same decade - where folks move to, and who does the moving.

Housing construction DOES impact school districts - this is hard data going back to the ORIGINAL court orders on desegregation.

Did the court look at that data, or basically assign guilt without data?

All too often, a school district cannot directly cause school segregation - and this is especially true since - believe it or not - 1960; if anything, factors totally outside the control of said board are the determining factor.  (For instance, how big is the school district?  Is it a partial-county district (such as the Dallas Independent School District in the county of the same name in Texas - it does NOT comprise the whole of Dallas County, TX). Even if it DOES cover the whole county (such as Charles or Prince George's County in Maryland), how are regions of a district impacted by zoning decisions?  (That was the finding of fact in both Boston AND Prince George's County - the school system was, in fact, blameless; the original decision was found to be in error.)

I used to Live in Prince Georges County, Md. There were no problems that I was aware of although at the time I was dealing with the problems in DC which were huge.

[PGHammer]

Just now, Gary7 said:

I used to Live in Prince Georges County, Md. There were no problems that I was aware of although at the time I was dealing with the problems in DC which were huge.

I live in the county today - but did NOT when the county was under a desegregation order (instead, I lived in neighboring Charles County).  Single-county school districts are the rule - not the exception - in Maryland; unlike most states, there are NO partial-county school districts anywhere in the state; even Baltimore city is a single school district.  The same is true of Washington, DC - DCPS covers all of the city's public schools.

Segregation - where it happens - is a byproduct of "neighborhood schools"; which are popular regardless of ethnic background.  (The "neighborhood school" is what got both Boston and Prince George's County in hot water.)  That is, in fact, hard historical data.  "Magnet schools" and "vocational schools" are both attempts to force the parents to use a criteria OTHER than neighborhood (or ethnicity - which is the biggest factor in choosing where a family should move to); deck-stacking, in other words.  The problem in DCPS would, in fact, be repeated in Prince George's County - in both cases, the issue was, in fact, corruption. (In neither jurisdicton was it limited to the school board, either.)

[trag3dy]

42 minutes ago, devHead said:

Nothing like ignorant, racist, white people  - I would imagine there's a bumper crop of them in that town in Mississippi.

It's especially ironic when we now have black college students in the US asking for segregated dorms so they can have their safe spaces.

[Emn1ty]

2 minutes ago, trag3dy said:

It's especially ironic when we now have black college students in the US asking for segregated dorms so they can have their safe spaces.

And black only schools, even. We've come full circle.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

24 minutes ago, Ravensky said:

Where is the article? Another ilegaloperation troll page? cmon...

He quoted part of the article and linked to the source (NY Times).  

 

If that isn't good enough....this is from the US Department of Justice

 

 

Quote

Federal Court Orders Justice Department Desegregation Plan for Cleveland, Mississippi, Schools

 

Ruling Comes Nearly 60 Years After the Supreme Court’s Decision in Brown v. Board of Education

 

Late Friday, following a five-decade-long legal battle to desegregate schools in Cleveland, Mississippi, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi ordered the Cleveland School District to consolidate its secondary schools.  The court rejected as unconstitutional two alternatives proposed by the school district, agreeing with the Justice Department that the only way to achieve desegregation is by consolidating Cleveland’s high schools and middle schools. 

 

“Six decades after the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education declared that ‘separate but equal has no place’ in public schools, this decision serves as a reminder to districts that delaying desegregation obligations is both unacceptable and unconstitutional,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.  “This victory creates new opportunities for the children of Cleveland to learn, play and thrive together.  The court’s ruling will result in the immediate and effective desegregation of the district’s middle school and high school program for the first time in the district’s more than century-long history.”

 

In the 96-page opinion, the court made clear that the school district operated an inadequate dual system and failed to achieve the greatest degree of desegregation possible given the circumstances.  The court concluded the opinion by noting that “the delay in desegregation has deprived generations of students of the constitutionally-guaranteed right of an integrated education.  Although no court order can right these wrongs, it is the duty of the[d]istrict to ensure that not one more student suffers under this burden.”

 

Under the Justice Department’s plan approved by the court – which was developed in consultation with experts in school desegregation, school facilities, school financing and parent and community engagement – the district will consolidate the virtually all-black D.M. Smith Middle School with the historically white Margaret Green Junior High School.  The district will also consolidate the virtually all-black East Side High School with the historically white Cleveland High School.  Further, the district will review its existing educational programs and identify new programs for the consolidated schools, address staffing considerations and perform necessary maintenance and upgrades to facilities.

 

The ruling follows years of collaborative work with the local community and private plaintiffs in this case.  Community members – from parents and faith leaders, to former teachers and coaches – testified in court in 2012 and 2015.  They described the stigma long associated with the district’s black schools and the sense among black children in the community that white children attended better schools.  During last May’s hearing, they testified that consolidation was the only way to bridge the divide and expressed a willingness to take the steps, however difficult, to secure equal educational opportunities for their children and grandchildren.  Parents of all racial backgrounds testified that they want their children to learn in a diverse environment to prepare them to encounter the world today.

 

The approved plan commits the district to a path of full engagement with students, parents, educators and community stakeholders in implementing consolidation.  Cleveland is a small Mississippi-Delta city of 12,000 residents, divided by railroad tracks that separate east from west as well as black from white.  As one community member testified, “[w]e can break down this wall of racism that divides us and keeps us separated, and we could create a new culture in our school system that’s going to unite us and unite our whole city.”  The Justice Department shares the sentiments of the court that “the[d]istrict’s commitment to the education of its children will no doubt ensure that the gem that is Cleveland, along with its surrounding areas, only shine brighter as the shadows of segregation recede.”

 

The Civil Rights Division works to enforce desegregation orders in school districts formerly segregated by law, which have not yet fulfilled their legal obligation to eliminate segregation “root and branch.”  The division continues to prioritize enforcement of court orders addressing segregation in our nation’s schools to ensure that all children can access the building blocks of educational success.

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/federal-court-orders-justice-department-desegregation-plan-cleveland-mississippi-schools

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

This is just a crying shame.

[Mockingbird]

22 hours ago, Emn1ty said:

And black only schools, even. We've come full circle.

That's not true at all.

 

Historically black colleges and universities accept a lot of non-black students.

 

Some historically black colleges and universities have student bodies with non-black majorities.

 

For example, Bluefield State College is 90% white.

[Emn1ty]

5 minutes ago, illegaloperation said:

That's not true at all.

 

Historically black colleges and universities accept a lot of non-black students.

 

Some historically black colleges and universities have student bodies with non-black majorities.

 

For example, Bluefield State College is 90% white.

I was mistaken in that statement, they are not black only but "Africentric".

[Mockingbird]

36 minutes ago, Emn1ty said:

I was mistaken in that statement, they are not black only but "Africentric".

These institutions are considered "historically black colleges and universities" because they were established prior to 1964 and served African-Americans who had difficulty getting into regular colleges and universities.

Edited May 18, 2016 by illegaloperation

[Emn1ty]

Just now, illegaloperation said:

These institutions are considered "historically black colleges and universities" because they were established prior to 1964 and served African-Americans who had difficulty getting into regular colleges and universities.

It doesn't change the fact that they are controversial. If we had "Caucasian-centric" schools there'd be an uproar. The point is, if we want to eliminate anything pro-white, we have to be fair and eliminate anything pro specific race. Or we could just stop kidding ourselves and realize that racial groups have different needs and allow racial targeting because of that fact.

Can't have your cake and eat it to. So if we can have "Africentric" schools, we should allow white-centric schools, too. Latino-centric, Asian-centric, etc. It's only fair.

[Mockingbird]

2 minutes ago, Emn1ty said:

It doesn't change the fact that they are controversial. If we had "Caucasian-centric" schools there'd be an uproar. The point is, if we want to eliminate anything pro-white, we have to be fair and eliminate anything pro specific race. Or we could just stop kidding ourselves and realize that racial groups have different needs and allow racial targeting because of that fact.

Can't have your cake and eat it to. So if we can have "Africentric" schools, we should allow white-centric schools, too. Latino-centric, Asian-centric, etc. It's only fair.

white centric colleges and universities = the majority of the colleges and universities out there

[trag3dy]

1 minute ago, illegaloperation said:

white centric colleges and universities = the majority of the colleges and universities out there

Maybe so but they aren't advertised as such and that makes all the difference the world.

[Mockingbird]

1 minute ago, trag3dy said:

Maybe so but they aren't advertised as such and that makes all the difference the world.

It's implied.

[trag3dy]

3 minutes ago, illegaloperation said:

It's implied.

No it's not. I've never seen a school advertisement saying "we'll take anyone with any color skin but we prefer some more than others".

 

In fact in any school I looked into in the past, apart from scholarships and grants, a person's ethnicity never mattered. Also ironically if your ethnicity was anything but white you had a better chance of getting one of those even if it wasn't deserved.

[Mockingbird]

5 minutes ago, trag3dy said:

No it's not. I've never seen a school advertisement saying "we'll take anyone with any color skin but we prefer some more than others".

 

In fact in any school I looked into in the past, apart from scholarships and grants, a person's ethnicity never mattered. Also ironically if your ethnicity was anything but white you had a better chance of getting one of those even if it wasn't deserved.

Did you even read what I wrote?

 

This is what I wrote:

 

28 minutes ago, illegaloperation said:

These institutions are considered "historically black colleges and universities" because they were established prior to 1964 and served African-Americans who had difficulty getting into regular colleges and universities.