In this month’s Z Magazine, Bill Berkowitz profiles The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), a Sacramento, California based anti-affirmative action legal organization, which is aiding the Seattle parents hoping to scuttle that city’s school integration plan. PLF is also part of the team fighting Louisville, Kentucky’s Jefferson County Public Schools.
On December 4th, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Seattle and Louisville desegregation cases. Parents have sued school districts that use race as a factor in determining where students attend school. The final rulings by the justices could well redefine the meaning of Brown v. Board of Education as it applies to school systems in the 21st century and, more immediately, could affect the status of hundreds of integration plans adopted by districts across the country.
In both cases, parents challenging the integration plans say that Brown forbids officials from basing school enrollment on race—despite the fact that courts have ordered many districts to adopt such plans for years. On the other side, school officials maintain that the vestiges of segregation, especially in housing patterns, require districts to adopt measures that promote greater diversity. Officials note that such plans are not only necessary in terms of equity, but are educationally sound.
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