(NationalUSNews.com) — According to a recent study analyzing instances of segregation within American schools, segregation has become increasingly common over the past 30 years.
The Supreme Court explicitly ruled that segregation wasn’t constitutional in the landmark 1954 case Brown v. Board of Education, which established that schools couldn’t institute policies that would separate minority students from the rest of a school’s student body. Despite this landmark decision, some schools have allegedly separated students based on their ethnic identity or heritage, with data showing an alarming trend dating back to the 1990s.
The data regarding segregation’s return relates to how public schools have seen an increase in minority students over the past 30 years, with some schools having a student body that is more than 90% non-white. Data indicates that students of color attend schools with less funding and fewer extra-curricular programs. These schools also have a disproportionate number of students who are white, highlighting how schools have become increasingly segregated without an official segregation policy in place that isolates students or restricts them based on their race. According to data collected by the UCLA Civil Rights Project, around 45% of American students are white, but minority students attend schools that are approximately 75% non-white.
Stanford University and the University of Southern California also performed a study on the rise of segregation since the late 1980s, which found that segregation has increased by more than 60% over the last 30 years. The college-led study found that there are “intensely” segregated schools that feature a student body that is almost entirely nonwhite throughout the country. These schools have become three times as standard since the late 1980s, indicating a rise in segregation despite the illegality of the practice. The college-led study also found that in 2021, approximately 20% of United States public schools featured a disparity between minority students and white students.
While some education experts cite the alarming trend as proof that the Brown v. Board of Education decision failed to outlaw segregation, others defend schools and blame the rise in racial disparity on the communities surrounding schools. One such defender is Debbie Veney, who works with the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.
Veney claims that schools often focus on students from the surrounding region, which could explain why some schools have a disproportionate number of white students when compared to minority students. Veney also blamed income inequality for the rise in segregation, claiming that low-income students are often minorities and thus lack access to education that white students possess.
Copyright 2024, NationalUSNews.com
