Legal Letters & Comments

Legal Letters and Comments

Letters and comments made by FAIR for the purpose of advancing civil rights and liberties, and promoting a common culture based on fairness, understanding and humanity.

Seattle K-8 School Civil Rights Complaint

Leadership at Pathfinder K-8 School in Seattle, Washington has implemented several programs that separate students and other community members based on race or skin color in violation of federal law. Despite two attempts to begin a constructive dialogue with Pathfinder on better ways to further its antiracism goals, FAIR has not received a response from the school. It is our hope that the Office of Civil Rights will open an investigation into the matter and set forth requirements for the school to cease all discriminatory activities.

California Department of Education Gender Policy

"FAIR supports efforts to encourage respect for others in the classroom. But such measures should not in turn result in intolerance of protected speech that differs from the prevailing orthodoxy. We also advocate for a healthy partnership between and among educators, students, and parents. That partnership, however, is not honored when schools systematically foreclose parents from knowing about their child’s gender transition, in violation of their fundamental due process rights."

Virginia Gender Policy Public Comment

Several states and school districts have adopted policies directing or recommending that public schools conceal transgender students’ gender identity and gender transition from their own parents. Many states and districts have also implemented policies requiring students and teachers to use whatever pronouns others in the school demand.

Minnesota Job Fair Pricing Discrimination

The Minnesota Private College Council’s job fair established a differential pricing structure for employers who wish to attend based on skin color and ancestry. FAIR Legal sent a letter to the council explaining how the pricing structure was in violation of civil rights protections.

Race Essentialism in NYC Public School Curriculum

Teachers in PS 158 read first grade students the book entitled Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race. Our Skin teaches that “white” people invented racism in order to “justify slavery, colonialism, and genocide” and seek to “get more power” and to be “treated better than everyone else” ...

1st Amendment Gender Issues in Fairfax County Schools

Fairfax County Public Schools Board of Education was considering several amendments to its Student Rights and Responsibilities Booklet. Among the amendments being considered was a proposed change to the Leveled Responses to Student Behavior table which outlined various potential student behaviors and their related disciplinary consequences.

Brown's Discriminatory Teacher Training Program

Brown University’s decision to establish a teacher training program based on skin color and ancestry prompted FAIR Legal to send a letter to the university cautioning them against establishing programs that could be in violation of the Civil Rights Act.

"Liberated" Ethnic Studies for University of California Applicants

The ethnic studies discipline is represented by a wide spectrum of potential content and curriculum guidelines. While some teach ethnic studies in an inclusive manner, others teach Liberated Ethnic Studies, which uses a critical theory lens and promotes division and discrimination. FAIR supports inclusive ethnic studies programs that offer students an apolitical, holistic and comprehensive historical perspective of the ethnicities discussed.

"Liberated" K-12 Ethnic Studies in Washington State

Ideological Conformity at University of Colorado

Through multiple reports provided to FAIR: The University of Colorado, Denver was emphasizing a particular ideological viewpoint and concomitant intolerance of dissenting viewpoints. The University held events where individuals are physically segregated based on skin color. A chilling effect has resulted on campus, leaving some employees and students feeling they cannot express their beliefs without fear of retribution.

Segregated "Affinity" Spaces at Harvard Medical School

On May 3, 2022, FAIR Legal sent a letter to the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University. On its website, Harvard suggests it has an interest in hosting “conversations where Harvard community members can connect with others who share their identities”.

Scholarship Based on Skin Color at St. Catherine University

St. Catherine University announced a $10,000 George Floyd scholarship available only to a “Black, Indigenous Person of Color (BIPOC) Student”. St. Catherine appears to have created the George Floyd scholarship for remedial purposes: to “address systemic disparities” and “racial disparities that are present in our world.”

Anderson University's Segregated "Listening Sessions"

Upon learning that Anderson University planned to host ‘listening sessions’ for students of color and white students on separate days in an announcement made by the President’s Racial Equity Task Force, FAIR Legal sent a letter to the university highlighting the legal and ethical implications of such a decision.

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