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National
Campaign To Restore Civil Rights Denounces Supreme Court Rulings
NEW
YORK CITY (June 28, 2007) - Today the National Campaign to Restore
Civil Rights denounced two rulings and voiced strong concern about
the future of diversity in education. The Campaign reacted to
a pair of critical rulings in Parents Involved in Community
Schools v. Seattle School District and Meredith v. Jefferson
County Board of Education, in which the Supreme Court held
that local school districts may not take voluntary steps to overcome
racial inequality and unequal educational opportunities.
Just
weeks ago the Campaign held a press conference announcing the
winners of their national essay contest, "Does Diversity
Matter?" "The National Campaign to Restore Civil Rights
launched the essay contest in response to the Supreme Court's
consideration of these cases that could overturn or curtail historical
advancements to promote diversity in schools," said Cristóbal
Joshua Alex, Campaign Coordinator. "Unfortunately, the Court
did just that. While our society is becoming more diverse, the
Supreme Court took a giant step backward today and rolled back
the opportunities for children to attend schools that reflect
the world in which they live," Alex continued.
The
Campaign received more than 1600 essays from young people across
the country with their views on why diversity in the public schools
is important. Jody Leung, the winner of the contest, wrote "Brown
v. Board of Education paved the way for integration and the
Civil Rights Movement" and "made America a better place."
She closes her "Diversity is our Strength" essay with
a call to action: "The time is now and we must encourage
racial integration in classrooms." Instead, the Supreme Court
held the Seattle and Louisville's policies designed to promote
racial equality are unconstitutional.
Several
of the Campaign's partners also expressed extreme disappointment
in the Court's rulings. "The Court today resurrected 'separate
but equal' in our schools. Because of today's rulings, schools
like those in Seattle and Louisville will become more segregated,
and children of all races will have fewer opportunities to learn
together and become prepared to live and work in a diverse world,"
said Marianne Engelman Lado, general counsel to the New York Lawyers
for the Public Interest. "Today's Supreme Court decision
is a devastating loss for all of America's children. Parents across
the nation should be concerned about their children's right to
equal educational opportunity," said Engelman Lado.
The
pair of decisions comes on the heels of two Bush appointments
to the Supreme Court that has moved the Court markedly to the
right. "Today's decision is yet another move by a Court that
is out of touch with the issues in our society-a Court that continues
to roll back civil rights and opportunities for advancement for
our nation's children," Engelman Lado said. She commented,
"Chief Justice Roberts expressed the view that diversity
may be a compelling basis for educational policy at the college
level but not for our nation's school children. This is incomprehensible."
"These cases illustrate the important role the Supreme Court
has in shaping our society. The Court can make this a stronger,
better country. Or it can turn back the hard-earned victories
from the civil rights struggles of the past. We must take back
the courts in order to strengthen our communities and our country,"
said Eva Paterson, president and co-founder of the Equal
Justice Society.
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