Opinion / Editorial by Sarina Nguyen and Victoria Benitez
The Latinos-in-Action and school course is textbook racial discrimination by participating in racial segregation and excluding anyone that isn’t a Latino, which is why the program and course are coming to an end in Broward County Public Schools. At least, that is what the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) comes to believe and what their letter to FL school districts suggests.
The FL and U.S Departments of Education want to “cancel” the class because of apparent:
- Segregation
- Racial balancing charges
- Discrimination against students non-Latino races
The Latinos-in-Action courses were first offered by BCPS during 2015. And now, the program was officially cancelled this month. The FL Dept. of Education warned that if districts does not comply, they will lose $30 million in federal magnet program funding, which is incredibly confusing with the lack of connection between the two.
That threat heavily implies that the DOE is willing to harm the education of students in the magnet program- which is incredibly ironic considering that they are called the Department of Education.
The DOE has deemed the Latinos-in-Action course as discrimination against non-Latino students by excluding them and claims the classes segregates students based on race. In other words, they’re accusing the course of being built on racism. The removal of the course has disheartened students in the program and out. To students, it is not just a class for them, but a place to belong, feel safe, and embrace their identities in. It’s a second home.
But what has Broward County done about it? Broward and other counties have decided to replace Latinos-in-Action with new courses with one of them being called “Leaders-in-Action” with an entirely new curriculum to apparently make the class more accessible towards all people regardless of ethnicity. The class will encourage leadership, and it will not be mandatory for all students to take the class.
Districts have also announced that the federal directive only targeted the elective course and not extracurricular activities.
Despite it all, School Board Chair Debra Hixon of Broward Schools states that students of all races and backgrounds take a Latinos-in-Action course at Broward Schools. She claimed it was confusing for the DOE to connect Latinos-in-Action programming with the $30 million Magnet Schools Assistance Program grant the district had applied for because “the grant that will be affected doesn’t have anything to do with LIA,” Hixon said.
She also says, “It would have been better if DOE had contacted us to ask about the concerns before they came to their own conclusions.” It is more clear than ever that the DOE is quick to jump to strong conclusions without sufficient evidence to back their claims up, as it is shown that they did not do thorough investigation on this matter. They also did not communicate g with representatives of Broward Schools beforehand- let alone walk into an LIA class to see for themselves.
Many people believe that they were simply looking for any excuse to rid of the program due to their own underlying racism, especially regarding the recent and ongoing deportations of countless Hispanic people – criminal or not – under the Trump administration.
Overall, the removal of the Latinos-in-Action course has brought great disappointment and heartbreak to students alongside their parents.
Many do not agree with this decision of getting rid of a class that acts as a safe place for kids and allows them to embrace who they are in every way. LIA is a course that actively brings kids together and keeps them together. It celebrates people’s differences and teaches children life skills, which majority of other classes do not do by solely focusing on academic skills. Those life skills include how to take the initiative and be a leader, how to empathize and collaborate with others, how to be prepared for life, and most importantly: how to be proud of who you are.
The U.S. Department of Education has no right to take it all away from students they say they care so much for.
LIA Ban
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