MULTIRACIAL COMMUNITY: ZERO

Census Bureau: 3 ½ Million Counted—Multiracial Community: ZERO

Most people believe that the United States Census Bureau (CB) sends them a census form every ten years, compiles the data from those forms, and their work is done. Not so fast. The CB also takes a nationwide survey every year called the American Community Survey (ACS). The results of the latest ACS were revealed yesterday.

The CB did NOT use any classification to identify the multiracial population. This is a huge blow to the multiracial community. We were assurance by the CB and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that the classifications would remain the same as they were for the 2010 Census.

Our federal government has, once again, rendered multiracial people invisible. To say there may be an undercount of the multiracial population is a gross understatement.

Along with their actions being wrong on so many different levels, I wonder where our community is on this. Does anyone care or has the multiracial population become so apathetic toward the issue of appropriate racial and ethnic classification that it has lost its way completely? WAKE UP!

Our position at Project RACE has always stated that if the CB was going to collect population statistics at all, they needed to provide accurate data for our racial group. The CB’s American Community Survey tagline is: “A New Approach for Timely Information.” No kidding. That new approach got rid of any hope for the multiracial population.

Where are the other advocates? Eric Hamako is supposed to be representing the multiracial community on the Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee (NAC) on Race, Ethnic, and Other Populations. Does he actually understand what happened on his watch?

Where are the academics? I know of at least one that was in an online chat room (still) taking pot shots at Project RACE and me, specifically. Another was tweeting about nothing.  At that same time, I was quickly reading about the population survey debacle and contacting the Census Bureau.

The survey figures came from 3 ½ million Americans. How could they not count the multiracial population? Does the multiracial community really not care to fix the government’s obvious discrimination and racism towards us? If that is the case, we might as well not exist at all. We are already invisible in the eyes of our federal government.   

Susan Graham

Racial Disparities in School

Florida District Investigated Over Disparities in Student 

Yet another school district is being investigated over disparities in the discipline rates of students of different races.

News reports Wednesday said that the U.S. Department of Education's office for civil rights is investigating the 71,000-student Brevard County school district on Florida's east coast after four complaints were filed with the agency.

Florida Today reported that black students make up 15 percent of the student population in the district, but they accounted for 30 percent of suspensions. White students account for 66 percent of the population, but 52 percent of suspensions, the newspaper said.
Last month, the North Brevard chapter of the NAACP filed several complaints with the office for civil rights, and told the newspaper those were the prompts for the investigation.

"The data suggests there are some inequities," said North Brevard NAACP President Bill Gary, who filed the complaint, to Florida Today. "One infraction usually leads to another and another. ... There's a disturbing trend."

Brevard Superintendent Brian Binggeli told the newspaper that the district has been working to reduce suspension rates for all students, although a nearly 20-year-old report by the news outlet said 32 percent of suspensions districtwide were of black students in secondary schools, although they composed 14 percent of the student population.

Research across states and districts has shown that disparities in discipline rates are common—but not universal. But the problem is pervasive enough that schools should work on finding alternative ways of addressing student behavior problems.

In Brevard, the federal investigation will also look at the hiring and promotion of black teachers, and the closing of three schools with a high percentage of black students at the same time the district kept a predominantly white school open. All of these were part of the NAACP complaints.

Earlier this year, the civil rights office confirmed it is investigating the Seattle school district over discipline practices.

In 2010, the Obama administration pledged to address the "disparate impact" of school discipline policies. Last year, the first of those inquiries was resolved when the office for civil rights required a number of changes in the Oakland, Calif., school district because of inequities in how black and white students in the district have been punished,
Source: Education Week 

Did you know THIS about your civil rights?

The Office of Civil Rights in the US Department of Education has expanded its reach into schools. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan pledged in 2010 that he would aggressively combat discrimination in public schools. This is the same US Department of Education that refuses to put the term multiracial on school forms. Sounds like discrimination to us.