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.
In January, PDE discovered that a Kentucky school district offered an affinity group meant only for “female students who are descendants from Africa." Consequently, PDE filed a complaint with the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). This was shared with Townhall exclusively.
This week, PDE shared with Townhall that the OCR will investigate the complaint against Bryan Station High School in Lexington, Kentucky.
“The District has been informed of your complaint allegations and information and documentation has been requested from the District,” a letter from OCR reads (via PDE):
Please be advised that the District must not harass, coerce, intimidate, discriminate, or otherwise retaliate against an individual because that individual asserts a right or privilege under a law enforced by OCR or files a complaint, testifies, or participates in an OCR proceeding. If this happens, the individual may file a retaliation complaint with OCR.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, it may be necessary to release this document and related correspondence and records upon request. If OCR receives such a request, we will seek to protect, to the extent provided by law, personal information.
“Public schools are supposed to be a bastion of diverse ideas and perspectives. However, students in Fayette County Public Schools are denied entry to affinity groups based on their race and sex. This thought process is inherently un-American. I am grateful OCR is investigating this district for its blatant discrimination against students for their immutable traits," Caroline Moore, vice president of PDE, told Townhall.
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.”
“Daughters of Africa is nothing short of unconstitutional, as it unfairly targets students of a specific sex and country of origin,” Moore told Townhall when the complaint was filed.
“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.