Parental rights organization Parents Defending Education has worked nonstop in recent years to expose school districts across the country for policies and curriculum meant to indoctrinate students. This ranges from curriculum on Critical Race Theory (CRT) to keeping parents in the dark about their children’s names and pronouns at school.
Another aspect of this woke indoctrination in schools comes in the form of groups and events. One example Townhall reported on was how a left-wing school board association got caught promoting race-based affinity groups for members.
Now, PDE has discovered that the Bryan Station High School in Lexington, Kentucky is offering a “Daughters of Africa” affinity group meant only for “female students who are descendants from Africa." PDE shared a copy of the complaint for the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights with Townhall (via PDE):
Attached to this complaint is supporting evidence in the form of a “Daughters of Africa” affinity group webpage on District’s website (Exhibit A). Exhibit A makes clear that program attendance is limited to only “female students who are descendants from Africa.” The group thus excludes others, and this exclusion is based on an individual’s immutable characteristics – namely, both race and sex. (Ex. A).
Possible benefits from the “Daughters of Africa” include motivational meetings, leadership opportunities, and field trips associated with the group. The webpage states a primary purpose of the program is to “inspire” and “empower” female students from Africa and new to America (Ex. A).
As the Department of Education is no doubt aware, discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, or national origin raises concerns that the Bryan Station High School has received federal funds in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which declares that “no person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
The school district’s webpage of the affinity group shows that “Daughters of Africa” is meant to “inspire and empower” students, as well as wanting “our students to be proud of the rich continent of Africa and to never forget their heritage.”
The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights is the same department that is investigating schools across the country for antisemitism in the wake of Hamas’ barbaric attack on Israel.
“Daughters of Africa is nothing short of unconstitutional, as it unfairly targets students of a specific sex and country of origin,” Caroline Moore, vice president of PDE, told Townhall.
“Unfortunately, we have seen groups like this trend in districts across the country. If this district has a vested interest in ‘female descendents of Africa’ to align with a book of the same name, shouldn’t this group be open to all and not held in the shadows?” she added.
