Latest news with #HouseBill1193
Black America Web
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Black America Web
Federal Judge's Ruling Could Halt Mississippi's DEI Ban In Schools
Source: kickstand / Getty Across the country, several states have enacted bans on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in K-12 schools and higher education. Unsurprisingly, Mississippi is one such state, but a lawsuit filed by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) could temporarily prevent it from being enforced. The Clarion Ledger reports that the ACLU's lawyers have requested that Federal Judge Henry Wingate put a restraining order on several state boards designed to enforce Mississippi's DEI ban at K-12 schools and public universities. The ACLU has argued that enforcement of the ban should be halted due to the law having vague language, leaving open different interpretations of how it should be enforced. They also argue that the ban infringes on educators' and students' First and Fourteenth Amendment rights by restricting their speech. The attorneys from the ACLU are representing several students and education advocacy groups. The ACLU has requested a 14-day temporary restraining order (TRO) on the ban and intends to file a motion requesting a second 14-day TRO as the issue is litigated. The state's Assistant Attorney General Rex Shannon is representing the state boards targeted in the lawsuit and has argued the TRO shouldn't be granted as it would infringe on the state's sovereignty. Wingate repeatedly asked Shannon what harms the state would experience should he grant the restraining order, but Shannon said he didn't have enough time before the case to provide specific harms. Wingate will make a decision on granting the restraining order in the next week. Mississippi's DEI ban did not pass without a fight. House Bill 1193 prevents Mississippi schools from having DEI programs and teaching 'divisive concepts.' Sounds vague? Apparently, that was the point, which is concerning, as Mississippi's DEI ban allows students, parents, and educators to sue schools if they feel the ban was violated. Should a school receive two violations, the state would withhold funds until the violations are corrected. Source: Dennis Macdonald / Getty From Mississippi Today: People could only sue after they go through an internal campus review process and a 25-day period when schools could fix the alleged violation. Republican Rep. Joey Hood, one of the House negotiators, said that was a compromise between the chambers. The House wanted to make it possible for almost anyone to file lawsuits over the DEI ban, while Senate negotiators initially bristled at the idea of fast-tracking internal campus disputes to the legal system. The House ultimately held firm in its position to create a private cause of action, or the right to sue, but it agreed to give schools the ability to conduct an investigative process and potentially resolve the alleged violation before letting people sue in chancery courts. 'You have to go through the administrative process,' said Republican Sen. Nicole Boyd, one of the bill's lead authors. 'Because the whole idea is that, if there is a violation, the school needs to cure the violation. That's what the purpose is. It's not to create litigation, it's to cure violations.' So much of American and global history consists of 'divisive concepts.' So if a teacher says 'Slavery was bad,' or 'Mississippi has a shameful history of lynching,' and a child's parents disagree, the vagueness of the law seems as though it would allow them to file a suit claiming that Mississippi's DEI ban was violated. So that then begs the question: are we just going to stop teaching about historical horrors because it offends the people who think they were a good thing? Democratic Rep. Bryant Clark, son of Robert Clark, the first Black Mississippian elected to the state Legislature since the 1800s, argued Mississippi's DEI ban was unnecessary and particularly offensive given the state's dark history in its treatment of Black people. 'We are better than this, and all of you know that we don't need this with Mississippi's history,' Clark said during the debate period. 'We should be the ones that say, 'listen, we may be from Mississippi, we may have a dark past, but you know what, we're going to be the first to stand up this time and say there is nothing wrong with DEI.'' Mississippi's DEI ban is just one of many being enacted around the country. States such as Texas and West Virginia have passed similar laws banning DEI in K-12 and postsecondary education. Several colleges have already begun phasing out their DEI initiatives as a result of a 'Dear Colleague' letter sent by the Department of Education threatening to withhold federal funding from schools believed to have DEI initiatives and programs. SEE ALSO: Survey: High-Level Business Execs Say DEI Is Necessary UNC Asheville Dean Of Students Fired For Pro-DEI Comments SEE ALSO Federal Judge's Ruling Could Halt Mississippi's DEI Ban In Schools was originally published on
Associated Press
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Groups sue Mississippi education boards over new DEI law
A coalition of civil rights and legal organizations filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Mississippi's education boards challenging diversity, equity and inclusion policies imposed by the Legislature at public schools, colleges and universities. The complaint was filed Monday in the Southern District Federal Court by the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi and partner legal groups against the Institutions of Higher Learning, Mississippi Community College Board, Mississippi State Department of Education and Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board. According to an ACLU press release, the lawsuit was prompted by concerned teachers, parents, students and organizations. The lawsuit alleges that House Bill 1193, which was passed by the Legislature in April and is part of a national trend of anti-DEI legislative efforts, violates the First and Fourteenth amendments — which respectively constitutionally protect free speech and equal protection under the law — by imposing the government's views on race, gender and sexuality on students and educators. It also claims that the vagueness of the law allows officials to enforce it 'in an arbitrary and discriminatory fashion,' and that it doesn't provide a clear process for rectifying violations. Rob McDuff, a Mississippi Center for Justice attorney on the case, said the measure will force a complete revamp of various K-12, college and law-school courses, including Mississippi history, biology and English literature. 'It's one of the most ridiculous things to come out of the Legislature in a long time, and that's saying something,' he said. 'It's really going to alter education as we know it in Mississippi.' A spokesperson for IHL said the board is reviewing the lawsuit and could not comment. A spokesperson for the Mississippi Department of Education directed questions to the Mississippi attorney general's office. Sen. Nicole Boyd, R-Oxford, one of the bill's authors, declined to comment on the lawsuit when reached by Mississippi Today. Jarvis Dortch, director of the ACLU of Mississippi, said in a press release, 'Members of the Mississippi Legislature may very well be incapable of having productive discussions on race, gender, or our state's history. That doesn't mean our educators and students aren't up to handling difficult conversations. 'The First Amendment protects the right to share ideas, including teachers' and students' right to receive and exchange knowledge,' Dortch said. 'Open and honest dialogue benefits all students and, if given a try, it would benefit the Mississippi Legislature.' ___ This story was originally published by Mississippi Today and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
ACLU, partners file lawsuit challenging Mississippi's DEI ban
JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – A federal lawsuit had been filed against the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL), Mississippi Community College Board, Mississippi State Board of Education, and the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board. The lawsuit, filed by ACLU of Mississippi, Mississippi Center for Justice, Badat Legal and Quinn, Connor, Weaver, Davies & Rouco LLP, the challenges the constitutionality of House Bill 1193 of the 2025 legislative session. With budget approved, Mississippi lawmakers look ahead to 2026 session According to the complaint, House Bill 1193 violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution by imposing the state government's preferred views on matters of public concern – like race, gender and sexuality – on students, educators and families across Mississippi and censoring contrary views. The complaint also alleges that some of the provisions of the law are vague and contradictory that students and educators do not know what they can and cannot do at school. 'Members of the Mississippi Legislature may very well be incapable of having productive discussions on race, gender, or our state's history. That doesn't mean our educators and students aren't up to handling difficult conversations,' said Jarvis Dortch, executive director of the ACLU of Mississippi. 'The First Amendment protects the right to share ideas, including teachers' and students' right to receive and exchange knowledge. Open and honest dialogue benefits all students and, if given a try, it would benefit the Mississippi Legislature.' 250609_complaint_challenging_ms_dei_law_final_0Download Plaintiffs allege that the law, which was passed to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), would ban teachers and students from discussing slavery, the Civil War, various forms of discrimination in the past and present, the civil rights movement, the women's suffrage and women's rights movements and the LGBTQ rights movement. Plaintiffs asked the federal court in Jackson find various provisions of the law to be unconstitutional in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of the plaintiffs and to issue a preliminary injunction to prevent the law from being enforced, followed later by a permanent injunction. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DEI bans for schools, colleges passed by Mississippi Legislature
After several heated debates in both the House and Senate and many hours of back-and-forth negotiations, Mississippi lawmakers passed a measure recently to ban diversity, equity and inclusion policies at Mississippi schools, community colleges and universities. The legislation, House Bill 1193, passed by the House Tuesday, April 1, and Wednesday, April 2, in the Senate, would fall in line with recent executive orders signed by President Donald J. Trump to ban DEI policies within the federal government. The bill, on top of banning DEI policies and teachings, also seeks to establish internal reporting mechanisms and legal recourses to prevent any DEI activity. "We had to take into consideration the federal executive orders that have passed down," Senate Universities and Colleges Chairwoman Nicole Boyd, R-Oxford said. "We worked with the House to get a bill that we thought would be good guidance for our K-12 schools, our community colleges and our IHL institutions to work with what we were looking for." During every debate in both the House and Senate this session, Democrats have challenged the legislation, saying it would erode protections for minorities that have helped to make Mississippi's education system a more inclusive setting for both working professionals and students. 'What diversity, equity and inclusion does is it is a mechanism that opens the door for me that your fathers or your grandfathers or somebody down the road opened for you," Sen. Rod Hickman, D-Macon, said on the Senate floor in February. Senate passes DEI ban: DEI ban passes MS Senate. See who will be impacted DEI in the past was pegged as a method to ensure minority populations and underrepresented groups were not held back from both professional and educational opportunities. In recent years, those policies have come under attack by state and national Republicans, who have labeled DEI discriminatory. DEI opponents have also argued the policies force identity politics and education on students, putting groups of people into discriminatory labels. There are some groups and acts, including disabled students and veterans, any scholarly research and student organizations, that are exempt from the legislation seeking to ban DEI policies and activities. Some concepts such as gender identity will also be removed from education policy and curriculums, which fall in line with a statewide effort to align national GOP practices. When the House and Senate first proposed their bills, there was a big difference in how DEI ban policies would be reported and enforced. The House initially pushed for a process where state funding could be suspended for schools or universities that were reported to be in violation of the new law, as well as a method for litigation against that institution. The Senate preferred a more in-house approach, allowing for any violation to be dealt with internally at first, with a task force committee to study education efficiency attached to the bill. House passes DEI ban: MS House passes DEI ban. See who would be impacted Both chambers eventually compromised and the legislation now allows for an internal review process of any DEI ban violations and people can sue only after that review has been completed. That review period lasts 25 days for the school or college to "reverse" whatever DEI or DEI-adjacent activity that has been reported, and people could only sue after that. They could also ask the state attorney general's office to sue on their behalf if they do not agree with any findings in a report produced at the end of that 25-day review period. The DEI ban comes on the heels of the Trump administration's efforts to ban DEI within the federal government and within education. Since his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump has been firm that eliminating DEI is a priority for his team and himself. This year Republicans in both chambers have worked to eliminate DEI after state colleges had been amending many of their DEI policies to fall in line with national GOP trends. It also happened to one of only a few legislative priorities that made it out of the 2025 session. Lawmakers on Wednesday and Thursday gaveled out the session early after they could not come to an agreement on the state's $7 billion budget. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves said on Thursday afternoon he plans to call a special session to fund the coming fiscal year, which begins on July 1. Grant McLaughlin covers the Legislature and state government for the Clarion Ledger. He can be reached at gmclaughlin@ or 972-571-2335. This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: DEI bans pass MS Legislature
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
College frosh, sophs can't choose to live off-campus
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Most first- and second-year students at South Dakota's public universities will have to continue living in the schools' dormitories and taking the schools' meal plans, the state House of Representatives has decided. SD Senate votes to maintain child marriage House members argued for a half hour on Tuesday about a proposal from Republican Rep. Phil Jensen to let them have the freedom to sleep and eat where they choose. In the end, House Bill 1193 failed on a 28-42 vote. 'Dorm life isn't great,' Jensen said. But Republican Rep. Mike Stevens called for the bill's defeat. He said the Legislature had committed to $87 million of bonds for student housing that would be at risk if freshmen and sophomores weren't required to live there. That could affect bond ratings for other governments when they want to borrow, he warned. 'That impacts everybody across the state,' Stevens said. He noted that students can apply for exemptions to live off-campus. Republican Rep. Bobbi Andera called for the House to focus on who would potentially benefit from the proposed change. 'This is about our children and their choices, and their parents' choices,' she said. Jensen in closing brought up another point. 'Students amass an incredible amount of debt during the four years or five years or six years to get a degree,' he said. KELOLAND News spoke with people in Brookings about the proposal last week. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
