Trump Administration Urged to End Obama-Era ‘Misstep’ of School Leniency Rules for Minority Students

Civil rights and education experts continue to urge the Trump administration to scrap an Obama-era school leniency policy that coerced school districts into limiting reports of minority students’ assaultive and threatening behavior.

Under the Obama policy, in place now in more than 50 school districts throughout the country, students whose behavior would have previously drawn an arrest or a suspension are instead referred to “teen courts” or “restorative justice talking circles.” Students who receive such referrals could still be able to purchase a firearm even though they may have a history of violent behavior or threats.

This “disparate impact” policy is based on the assertion that minority students are disciplined at higher rates because of systemic racism by teachers and school administrators.

Attorney Peter Kirsanow, a Republican member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, tells Breitbart News the Obama policy is “horribly flawed” and should be ended “without delay.”

“The Obama school discipline policy is based on a number of false assumptions, including the premise that racial disparities in disciplinary rates are due to racial discrimination as opposed to disparities in rates of offense,” asserts Kirsanow, who also chairs the board of directors of the Center for New Black Leadership.

“The consequences of keeping the policy in place are staggering,” he continues. “A number of schools have experienced serious spikes in violence. Classrooms are being disrupted by students who know they’ll suffer no real consequences.”

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