{"id":736,"date":"2022-12-14T18:59:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-15T00:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/?p=736"},"modified":"2023-03-27T10:45:20","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T15:45:20","slug":"west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/","title":{"rendered":"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

School leaders have said they don\u2019t tolerate racism and that they regularly train teachers how to deal with bullying. But parents say inaction by officials tells a different story.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By Jayme Lozano<\/a> from texastribune.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parents, full of anger and disbelief, have confronted school leaders in the Lubbock area over a series of racist and antisemitic incidents in several schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In total, four separate incidents have come to light in recent weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two episodes \u2014 both involving Black students targeted in constant bullying by their peers and inaction by school officials, parents say \u2014 have led to separate federal civil rights lawsuits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of the two lawsuits is the pain parents say their children have endured as a result of months of constant and violent bullying \u2014 including an Instagram account that posted photos of Black students from a Lubbock middle school with racist captions, and racial discrimination by school officials against students at the high school in Slaton, about 17 miles south of Lubbock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A third South Plains school district \u2014 Roosevelt ISD \u2014 had a parent file a federal complaint against them for racial discrimination by school officials. There, a mother took her daughter out of school after she claims school officials targeted her child for undue disciplinary actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, a threatening antisemitic petition was passed around by a student at another Lubbock middle school. Parents say they are disappointed the school hasn\u2019t had a strong response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On their own, these might seem like isolated incidents of school-age angst. However, racially driven and antisemitic incidents are on the rise<\/a> in Texas. And now four different school districts in the South Plains are facing tensions emblematic of the widespread problem. Instead of addressing it directly, parents say school officials try to sweep the issues under the rug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lubbock-Cooper ISD \u2014 which includes Laura Bush Middle School, where the Instagram account was based \u2014 declined to comment on the federal lawsuit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRacism has no place at any school within Lubbock-Cooper ISD,\u201d the district added in a statement. \u201cIt is not a reflection of our beliefs as a school and it completely contradicts the virtues we wish to instill in our students.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lubbock parents are grappling with sending their children to schools where they may not feel safe because of their skin color or religion, particularly with officials at the helm who parents no longer trust.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey know that there\u2019s a problem but they don\u2019t want to do anything about it,\u201d said Tracy Kemp, a mother of three kids in the Lubbock-Cooper district and a participant in the federal complaint. \u201cThey would rather us leave than to change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black students make up 3% of Lubbock-Cooper\u2019s student body. The complaint, which was a joint filing with the families, Intercultural Development Research Association and the Lubbock NAACP, alleges the school is known for its frequent, consistent and extreme discriminatory practices against its Black students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lubbock-Cooper school district covers Southwest Lubbock, serving families on the farthest edges of Lubbock\u2019s newest developed area and families from nearby communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The complaint details the near-daily harassment and bullying several Black students had to endure since last spring, which included being called racial slurs and hearing the sounds of cracking whips as they walked through the halls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The complaint also alleges that the incidents \u2014 which lasted for months \u2014 would often lead to physical threats and acts of violence against Black students by their white peers. Kemp\u2019s son was one of the students targeted in these assaults. Kemp thinks the attacks escalated because she was bringing attention to the matter. The school, she said, still hasn\u2019t had a meaningful response in more than eight months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey have nothing to show for it because they\u2019ve done nothing about it,\u201d Kemp said. \u201cThey\u2019ve put out damage control statements because we\u2019ve gone to the press, but they\u2019ve never come to us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parents reported the hostile acts to school administration, but they say officials didn\u2019t take action to end the harassment and would often punish the victims. Lubbock-Cooper ISD said it has responded to complaints by instituting more diversity training among teachers, administrators and students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similar incidents<\/a> were reported in the complaint against Slaton High School, where there are about 20 Black students. In one instance, the lawsuit claims, a Black student faced unfair punishment for retaliating against a white student for repeatedly calling her racist slurs. In a statement to NBC News, Slaton Superintendent Jim Andrus said the district trains staff regularly on how to address bullying allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Hutchinson Middle School in Lubbock, a parent alleged a student asked peers to sign a sheet of paper after calling for violence against Jewish people, according to emails obtained by The Texas Tribune. The parent suggested not all students who signed understood what it was for and some students signed, with real and fake names.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Administrators determined there was not an imminent threat to students and did not send out an email informing the public, despite being asked to do so by a Jewish parent. The school district claimed sending an email out would be a violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act because it could reveal the student\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lubbock Rabbi Deborah Goldmann emailed the principal and superintendent about the incident. In emails obtained by the Tribune, Goldmann said the community learns the behavior is acceptable because there was no response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Stewart, the principal of Hutchinson Middle School, responded to her saying the school has addressed the behavior with the individual involved and students who signed and that they are developing lessons to address the cultural and religious backgrounds of students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt does seem that you are beating around the bush and uncomfortable addressing antisemitism,\u201d Goldmann wrote back. \u201cIf they felt comfortable going around asking people to sign that paper, they are in an environment where other students feel the same level of comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roosevelt ISD, 10 miles east of Lubbock, is also facing an official complaint with the U.S. Department of Education\u2019s Office for Civil Rights. Kristen Arnold alleges that her daughter was being racially discriminated against by school officials and was falling behind in classes because of unjust punishments. In an effort to protect her daughter\u2019s mental health, Arnold pulled her from Roosevelt High School just before her senior year. She is now doing a homeschool program to be able to graduate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey literally harassed her right out of high school,\u201d Arnold told the Tribune. \u201cShe\u2019s been struggling with depression and anxiety.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to emails obtained by the Tribune, Arnold shared her concerns and attempted to meet with Roosevelt Superintendent Dallas Grimes about the problem in May. In response, Grimes said they have heard her grievances and were aware of the report she was filing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnless there is new information to educate me on, I\u2019m not sure what the purpose of the meeting would be,\u201d the email reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arnold was intimidated by the response and withdrew her complaints, but refiled in June. The case is now pending at the federal department of education. In an email to the Tribune, Grimes said the district knew she withdrew her complaints but was unaware of the new filing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

School leaders have said they don\u2019t tolerate racism and that they regularly train teachers how to deal with bullying. But parents say inaction by officials tells a different story. By Jayme Lozano from texastribune.org Parents, full of anger and disbelief, have confronted school leaders in the Lubbock area over a series of racist and antisemitic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[20,7],"class_list":["post-736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-bullying","tag-racism"],"yoast_head":"\nWest Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"School leaders have said they don\u2019t tolerate racism and that they regularly train teachers how to deal with bullying. But parents say inaction by officials tells a different story. By Jayme Lozano from texastribune.org Parents, full of anger and disbelief, have confronted school leaders in the Lubbock area over a series of racist and antisemitic […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Cooper For All\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-12-15T00:59:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-03-27T15:45:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cooper-for-all\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cooper-for-all\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/\",\"name\":\"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-12-15T00:59:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-03-27T15:45:20+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/2adde8c67130728fa961b7a22627022f\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/\",\"name\":\"Cooper For All\",\"description\":\"Advocating for the inclusion of all Lubbock-Cooper students\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/2adde8c67130728fa961b7a22627022f\",\"name\":\"cooper-for-all\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3c3ad7b53b531b8336588816067917c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3c3ad7b53b531b8336588816067917c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cooper-for-all\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All","og_description":"School leaders have said they don\u2019t tolerate racism and that they regularly train teachers how to deal with bullying. But parents say inaction by officials tells a different story. By Jayme Lozano from texastribune.org Parents, full of anger and disbelief, have confronted school leaders in the Lubbock area over a series of racist and antisemitic […]","og_url":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/","og_site_name":"Cooper For All","article_published_time":"2022-12-15T00:59:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-03-27T15:45:20+00:00","author":"cooper-for-all","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cooper-for-all","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/","url":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/","name":"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying - Cooper For All","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-12-15T00:59:00+00:00","dateModified":"2023-03-27T15:45:20+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/2adde8c67130728fa961b7a22627022f"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/west-texas-parents-are-suing-their-schools-over-racism-as-others-demand-action-over-antisemitic-bullying\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#website","url":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/","name":"Cooper For All","description":"Advocating for the inclusion of all Lubbock-Cooper students","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/2adde8c67130728fa961b7a22627022f","name":"cooper-for-all","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3c3ad7b53b531b8336588816067917c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3c3ad7b53b531b8336588816067917c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cooper-for-all"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/736","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=736"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/736\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":739,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/736\/revisions\/739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}