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Home » News » Archives » Civil Rights Groups Ask Court to Delay Fast Track Effort to End Historic Desegregation Agreement for Chicago Public Schools
Civil Rights Groups Ask Court to Delay Fast Track Effort to End Historic Desegregation Agreement for Chicago Public Schools For Immediate Release January 23, 2004 CHICAGO - Noting the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's historic decision in Brown v. Board of Education, demanding equality in public education for every child in our nation, a coalition of civil rights groups today asked a federal judge to delay approval of a modified agreement between the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and the U.S. Department of Justice until more stringent conditions can be added to the new agreement. The modified agreement emerged from negotiations between CPS and the federal government in 2003, after U.S. District Court Chief Judge Charles Kocoras questioned the continued enforcement of the original agreement reached in 1980. The amicus brief filed this afternoon by the Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois asks Judge Kocoras not to approve the modified agreement until provisions have been strengthened to ensure better oversight of the implementation of the agreement, to mandate that integration concerns be weighed as CPS opens news schools and closes existing ones, and to develop processes to allow parents and other interested parties to register complaints about the failure of CPS to provide additional assistance with English for students in need of such assistance to further their education. The coalition of civil rights groups objected to CPS efforts to relieve itself from a host of requirements under the agreement when the matter first arose last year. The ACLU of Illinois and its allies noted that there was a lack of a factual record about the need for ending the agreement, and that the public and community groups had been given little opportunity to addressing the future of the desegregation agreement. "This modified agreement leaves too many questions unanswered about how the Chicago Public School system will meet the educational needs of a large number of students in the system," said Harvey Grossman, Legal Director for the ACLU of Illinois, after the amicus brief was filed. "Many of the tangible goals contained in the original agreement were never met, and CPS asks the public and the court to believe that they can meet the requirements of this modified agreement without vigorous oversight and appropriate public input." "We hope the court also will make clear that CPS must demonstrate that it has done everything possible to desegregate the City's schools before it is released from the consent decree," added Sarah Vanderwicken of the Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights. "The outcome of this process will have a great impact upon the shape and scope of educational opportunities for all students in the City of Chicago," said Alonzo Rivas, staff counsel for the Chicago Office of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. "The suggestions we have made will help to insure not only more public awareness and public participation, but also help to ensure that CPS meets its obligations to desegregate the schools and provide excellent educational opportunities for all students, regardless of their race, ethnic background, and/or English language proficiency." |
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