EXCLUSIVE — Denver Public Schools is the subject of a federal civil rights complaint over its alleged requirement that faculty and staff take a “black excellence” pledge, according to the filing.
Education advocacy organization Parents Defending Education filed the complaint against the school district on Tuesday, telling the Department of Education‘s Office for Civil Rights that the pledge is “discriminatory in nature” and has a direct effect on how children learn in school.
“Prioritizing equity over merit puts students on the back burner in Denver Public Schools. Educators and staff in this district are required to pledge their allegiance to ‘black excellence’ as opposed to American values,” PDE’s Vice President Caroline Moore, who filed the complaint, told the Washington Examiner. “The district should be embarrassed for promoting curricula that exemplifies the ‘deep harm whiteness brings to students.’ No student, even those who are white, should go to school and feel ashamed for what they look like. Discrimination is discrimination, end of story.”
According to an internal memo cited in the complaint, staff members were told of various ways the school district has “Belief in and Commitment to Black Excellence,” providing a pledge stating that “all educators need to understand the prevalence & deep harm whiteness brings to students” and adding that teachers must “work to dismantle the system that allows certain students to excel, and others to perish.”
It also states the district will make “equity-based revisions to curriculum.”
The civil rights complaint argued one of the purposes of the training may be to “intentionally bring racially discriminatory concepts of ‘equity’ into the district’s curriculum.”
The Denver Public Schools memo states that “equity starts from the top,” and the pledge is being led by the district superintendent, school board, and senior leadership team.
Spelling out a yearslong commitment to critical race theory ideology and diversity, equity, and inclusion, the memo outlines an “acknowledgement of harm” while stating that the pledge “will not undo years of harm, trauma, and racism.”
The memo noted that the school district would “require conversations about racism and white supremacy culture and train school leaders and ILTs [instructor-led trainings] to lead these conversations.”
“All DPS employees must be actively engaged and learn to confront racism and understand how we all contribute to and can break down the barriers of institutionalized racism,” the memo continued.
Parents Defending Education said the pledge is both in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.
“This pledge will not only directly impact students in the District, but educators and staff as well,” the complaint read. “The latter category will be required to endure onerous trainings that focus solely on outcomes for black students, prioritizing the social, political and educational needs of some children over others solely based on the color of their skin.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
DPS did not respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
Read the full complaint here:
