Parents’ Group To Ask Justice Dept. To Intervene

Makes further allegations of racial profiling

Hannah Heineman
Mirror staff writer

   Alleging that the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) is engaging in racial profiling of Latino students and routinely disciplining them more harshly than Anglo students, members of the newly-formed Santa Monica chapter of the Mexican Political Association (MPA) said that apologies and an internal investigation were insufficient.
   Santa Monica MPA President, Natalie Presado, told the Board that MPA is “requesting that the U.S. Justice Department of Civil Rights investigate this School District.”
   The new group’s allegations echoed those made by a group of Latino and African American parents, Mothers For Justice (MFJ), at the June 27 Board meeting. Both the President and Vice-President of the Santa Monica chapter of MPA are members of MFJ.
   District Superintendent John Deasy responded to MFJ’s allegations by forming a 25-member Task Force on Racism and Discipline, which has been meeting regularly to investigate the allegations and make recommendations to the Board on District policies and practices in this area.
   State Association MPA member Raoul Wilson told the Board, “You really don’t know what’s happening in the schools because you are not there. You are relying on what your staff tells you and that’s why you have so much harassment and discrimination in the schools. The kids know it and the parents know it. MPA is not going to sit idly by while the police, the teachers and the counselors continue to abuse our young people. Schools today are being run worse than our prisons.”
   Isabel Martinez, a John Adams Middle School student, told of being accused of stealing a cell phone from a white student. She said that she attempted to explain to a school administrator that the phone in question was a Christmas present from her mother but the administrator told her to “stop lying.” When her mother showed the phone contract to school officials, she was told that cell phones were not allowed at school.
   MPA State President Victoria Baca asked the Board to “work with the newly-formed local chapter of the MPA…[and] listen to their cries of injustice because it may their children that are suffering but it will also affect your children and other constituents’ children.”
   Parent and MPA member, Gina DeVaca, alleged that she has “gotten unfair treatment from this School District.” She pointed to the Board and asked, “What are you going to do about it? It needs to stop. Are you going to do anything about this abuse of authority in the School District?”
   Board President Julia Brownly explained to the speakers that the Board could not respond to their comments because their issue was not on the agenda and the Board “is required by law to notice the public when we discuss any item.”
   In other business, the Board denied a Charter School Petition for the Hollywood Charter School, which had been filed in May. The Board found that the proposed charter school did not meet the standards set by the state education code for “sound educational practice.” The Board was concerned about the proposed educational program and budget.