Good move coming from the US Department of Education, office for Civil Rights. Tuscon Unified School District to be investigated for civil rights violations in their ban of Mexican-American Studies in House Bill 281. 

 via Three Sonorans

###

The US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Denver, Colorado, has opened an investigation into TUSD1.

This news comes on the one year anniversary of the TUSD Tragedy of May 3rd, 2011, where John Pedicone militarized the school board meetings, closing access to the citizens and ordering the arrest of seven women, including 69-year old Mexican American History Professor Lupe Castillo.

The Civil Rights Center, Inc.(the CRC), an Arizona Nonprofit Advocacy group headed by Executive Director, Silverio Garcia Jr., filed a RACIAL DISCRIMINATION complaint against the Tucson Unified School District #1 on January 17, 2012.

According to Silverio Garcia Jr., “The hateful, anti-immigrant political climate in the streets of Arizona has created a climate of irresponsibility and complete disregard for civil rights on federally-funded TUSD1 administrative offices, school facilities and/or campuses and this is the basis of the federal complaint.”

Garcia went on to state the following :

“The manner that a quorum of the TUSD1 School Board has publicly displayed itself along with its unchecked militaristic Law Enforcement tactics takes us back to the 50’s and 60’s when we speak of blatant Civil Rights violations against our Communities, Parents and Youth. It is far past time that the Federal Government came into TUSD1 and balanced the tables of EQUAL ACCESS and JUSTICE for ALL.

One’s Color, Race and National Origin should not determine one’s EQUAL ACCESS or deserved sense of Fair Play and Equality inside TUSD1. The days of arresting our retired & disabled Mexican-American History Professors, because they wish to read MLK’s Birmingham letter of April 1963 in a public forum, are over. The CRC is committed to filing whatever Federal complaints are needed to ensure ALL TUSD1 students, parents and Community members are shielded from the repeated racial discriminatory acts of the past.”

As a result of the CRC’s complaint, the US Department of Education, OCR opened its investigation vs TUSD1 (OCR.DENVER case # 08-12-1080) on April 18, 2012, the same day that TUSD1 announced on its website that the TUSD1 was now seeking new Community survey inputs for a new vision of TUSD1 for the future going forward.

Today, on the anniversary of the Tucson Police Department’s brutal and militaristic actions vs the Community, the Executive Director of the CRC also spoke of bringing an effective Civil Rights Training program/project to Tucson in order to educate the TUSD1 High School Students, Parents and Community members, in order to better unveil and file more Federal violations/complaints in the coming days.

Silverio Garcia Jr. and CRC Board members will be present at the Press Conference mentioned above to address questions from the Students, Parents, Community members and the Media.

What: Announcement on the US Department of Education, OCR investigation vs TUSD1 for Racial Discrimination – Tucson Unified School District #1

When: Tuesday, May 8, 2012 @ ~ 5:15 pm

Where: TUSD1 Administrative Offices 1010 E. 10th Street, Tucson, AZ or wherever School Board meeting held