The parental rights group Parents Defending Education (PDE), which has done excellent work at combatting radical left-wing ideologies in public schools, has filed a complaint against public schools in Portland, Oregon for a new disciplinary policy that factors a student’s race and gender identity.
The controversial policy, implemented last November after negotiations with teacher unions following a statewide strike, has drawn sharp criticism for how it determines schools must discipline students. Under the new guidelines, students who display “continuous disruptive behavior” are subject to a “support plan” that takes into account factors such as trauma, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability. The policy even suggests “disciplining some students and not others, solely based on immutable characteristics.”
Moreover, Portland public schools’ new disciplinary policy prohibits the suspension of students who make threats of violence, instead directing them to a “self-regulation space” at the school.
Caroline Moore, Vice President of Parents Defending Education, condemned the policy as “appalling” and blamed the teachers’ union of pushing for its inclusion in the strike agreement. Moore emphasized the importance of upholding parental rights and called for an investigation by the U.S. Department of Education into what she described as the district’s “unlawful practices.”
“The teachers wanted to amend the policy so desperately that they included the provision in their strike agreement. This is corrupt and un-American. I’m anxiously awaiting the U.S. Department of Education’s investigation into this district’s unlawful practices,” said Moore.
Conservatives have long criticized initiatives like DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and critical race theory (CRT) in schools, viewing them as divisive and detrimental to educational standards. As school districts continue to lower standards for students of a certain race or identity, it is just another example of the left’s soft bigotry of low expectations.
This piece first appeared at TPUSA.
