A new federal lawsuit in Maryland is challenging a Trump administration memo giving the nation’s schools and universities two weeks to eliminate “race-based” practices of any kind or risk losing their federal money.
Forcing schools to teach only the views supported by the federal government amounts to a violation of free speech, the organizations say, and the directive is so vague that schools don’t know what practices cross the line.
The lawsuit, filed by the American Federation of Teachers union and the American Sociological Association, says the Education Department’s Feb. 14 memo violates the First and Fifth Amendments.
The memo, formally known as a Dear Colleague Letter, orders schools and universities to stop any practice that treats people differently because of their race.
As a justification, it cites a Supreme Court decision banning the use of race in college admissions, saying the ruling applies more broadly to all federally funded education.
