Education版 - Ferguson School Board Elections Unfair to Black Candidates, |
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发帖数: 19398 | 1 By Corey Mitchell on December 18, 2014 12:29 PM
A federal lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union alleges
that school board elections in Ferguson, Mo., use a system that keeps blacks
"all but locked out of the political process."
The suit seeks to ban the Ferguson-Florissant school board's use of an at-la
rge voting system. Courts have found that at-large systems can make it impos
sible for groups that are in the numerical minority to gain representation.
Despite a student population that's nearly 75 percent black, six of seven sc
hool board members in the district are white. There were no black members un
til earlier this year. The ACLU is filing the suit on behalf of the NAACP's
Missouri chapter. The groups cite what they call a "long history of state-sa
nctioned disenfranchisement" of black voters.
"Under the current electoral system, they are systematically unable to elect
candidates of their choice and are all but locked out of the political proc
ess," the lawsuit alleges.
A spokeswoman for the Ferguson-Florissant district did not immediately respo
nd to Education Week's request for comment on the lawsuit. The school distri
ct was created by a mid-1970s desegregation order intended to remedy the eff
ects of discrimination against black students.
The ACLU's lawsuit claims that the district's at-large system violates the f
ederal Voting Rights Act's ban on racial discrimination in voting. Under an
at-large system, all candidates are elected by all the voters, rather than r
epresenting specific geographical areas. The plaintiffs want the system repl
aced with single-member districts.
The Voting Rights Act bans not just intentional racial discrimination in vot
ing, but also actions that have the effect of discriminating.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the "ACLU and NAACP have filed simi
lar lawsuits against school districts across the country, with much success.
School boards in California, for instance, are now widely turning away from
at-large elections in favor of sub-district contests." Education Week wrote
about that shift in California last year. | s*******d
发帖数: 2382 | 2 他们这样有意思吗
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【在 a*****g 的大作中提到】
: By Corey Mitchell on December 18, 2014 12:29 PM
: A federal lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union alleges
: that school board elections in Ferguson, Mo., use a system that keeps blacks
: "all but locked out of the political process."
: The suit seeks to ban the Ferguson-Florissant school board's use of an at-la
: rge voting system. Courts have found that at-large systems can make it impos
: sible for groups that are in the numerical minority to gain representation.
: Despite a student population that's nearly 75 percent black, six of seven sc
: hool board members in the district are white. There were no black members un
: til earlier this year. The ACLU is filing the suit on behalf of the NAACP's
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