Education group files racial discrimination complaint over black-only classes at Minneapolis schools

An education organization filed a racial discrimination complaint with the U.S. Department of Education over black-only classes at Minneapolis Public Schools.

The organization, Defending Education, filed the complaint on Friday, alleging that MPS has violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

"Several MPS high schools prohibit white and Asian students from enrolling in certain courses on black culture," according to the complaint. "The courses count toward MPS’s electives requirement, meaning that white and Asian students must choose from a narrower list of class options in order to graduate."

There are two courses, one for black male students and another for black female students, called “BLACK Culture – Building Lives Acquiring Cultural Knowledge,” per the complaint.

The male version of the class claims to “examin[e] the complexity of the black male experience by exploring the lived reality of black men in the United States,” while the female version claims to “examine the experiences of Black girls in public schools while celebrating, embracing, and developing cultural identity, sisterhood, and self-advocacy,” the complaint reads.

"Race-segregated classrooms clearly qualify as such discrimination and are thus incompatible with the 'color-blind' mandate of Title VI and the Equal Protection Clause. As such, MPS’s segregated classrooms are clear violations of both Title VI and the 14th Amendment," according to the complaint. "For these reasons, Defending Education respectfully asks OCR to open a civil rights investigation into MPS for potential violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause."

Sarah Parshall Perry, Vice President and Legal Fellow at Defending Education, released a statement on Monday regarding the complaint, saying, "With an exercise that mirrors the efforts of 1950's segregationists in the deep south, Minneapolis Public Schools has proven that the racism of old is new again.

"In a jaw-dropping experiment in race essentialism, South High School in Minneapolis offered classes on the 'lived reality' of black men and women in the US — classes that were open only to black students. It was our work unearthing the syllabuses of these classes that proved MPS is engaging in the kind of school programming that the Supreme Court outlawed in 1954 with its decision in Brown v. Board of Education. The Constitution demands color blindness, as does Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. MPS seems to have forgotten that, and it's high time they get a much-needed refresher."