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Report RACISM IN NY'S SCHOOLS ALLEGED
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History of
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Case
Studies of Police Brutality
Giuliani's
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Resources:
Center for Constitutional Rights (800) 764-0235
National Coalition on Police Accountability (312) 663-5392
National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights 212 614-5355 rperez@boricuanet.org
National Peoples Campaign - 39 West 14th Street, #206, NY, NY 10011. (212) 633-6646;
(Fax) (212) 633-2889
Speak Out! - POB 99096, Emeryville, CA 94662 Phone: (510) 601-0182; Fax: (510)
601-0183; speakout@igc.apc.org |
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The New York Civil Liberties Union is
poised to file sweeping lawsuits charging that the state's educational system
discriminates against minority schoolchildren on Long Island and elsewhere across the
state. Representatives of the civil-rights group say legal
action is being taken on behalf of nearly 100,000 students in upstate and suburban
districts, including Amityville, Hempstead, Roosevelt, Uniondale, Westbury and Wyandanch.
Details are to be unveiled Thursday at seven news conferences across the state, including
one in Mineola.
"We've never done this before," said Norman Siegel, the
state group's executive director, who described the planned legal action as a
"historic challenge."
Two lawsuits are planned, Siegel said. One will charge
discrimination under federal civil-rights law. The other will contend that minority
children are not receiving "adequate" schooling as required by the state
constitution.
The impending action is just one of several legal challenges to the
way New York State finances public schools and sets academic requirements for students.
Graduation requirements currently are being raised statewide, and civil-rights groups
contend that many minority teens are not adequately prepared for the Regents exams needed
to graduate. |
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State officials reply that they are
boosting financial aid to help schools prepare - by more than $ 200 million on the Island
alone during the last three years. But they did not address the Civil Liberties Union's
specific complaints yesterday. "We generally do not
comment on lawsuits," said Alan Ray, a spokesman for the State Education Department.
A New York City group, Campaign for Fiscal Equity, already has filed
a lawsuit on behalf of schoolchildren there, charging that they do not get their fair
share of state school aid. A trial is expected by spring.
One apparent aim of the new lawsuit would be to call attention to
the problems of impoverished districts upstate and in the downstate suburbs as well. Two
earlier lawsuits by suburban districts have failed in state courts, but these did not
focus on needs of minority youngsters.
"They want to make sure their people are not forgotten, if
there's some sort of major reform of the state financing system," said Michael
Rebell, a Campaign attorney. He added that his group was cooperating with the Civil
Liberties Union.
State education officials concede that some suburban districts rank
among the neediest, in terms of school finances and student poverty. An example is
Wyandanch, where taxable wealth is less than 40 percent of the state average.
"We've said all along that we do not receive adequate
funding," said James Lorthridge, the district superintendent. "Anything that
propels us toward that is something we support, as long as it's legal. |
