Federal Court Shoots Down Loudoun Anti-Equity Case, Supports Local School Board Autonomy
1/20/2022 - Loudoun County, VA
On January 20, US District Court Senior Judge Anthony Trenga dismissed a federal case against the Loudoun County School Board by Loudoun anti-equity activists Patti Menders and Scott Mineo. Scott Mineo heads the right-wing group Parents Against Critical Theory. Conservative activist Patti Menders was recently hired as "Northern Virginia Outreach Coordinator" by Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares, who recently launched a politically-motivated investigation into Loudoun County Public Schools. The class action suit against Loudoun County Public Schools alleged that initiatives to combat racial inequity in schools discriminated against white students. Loudoun4All applauds the dismissal of this case, and is grateful to Judge Trenga for his fair deliberations.
The plaintiffs alleged that the Student Equity Ambassador Program discriminated against white students and violated their First Amendment rights. The fact is that all students are welcome to apply for the Student Equity Ambassador Program, which encourages applicants to have a “passion for social justice.” The plaintiffs claimed such passion indicates a “liberal” method of thinking when all it actually requires is that students have a passion for fairness and equity, which Loudoun4All believes is not tied to any particular belief system, or political ideology.
Trenga's carefully crafted decision upholds LCPS equity programming. The court found that Mineo and Menders failed to demonstrate that the district's SEA program had "discriminatory intent." Trenga ruled that the LCPS Student Equity Ambassadors program's selection criteria "are substantially and rationally related to legitimate state purposes." The court also upheld the LCPS Bias Incident Reporting Form, ruling that the plaintiffs "failed to allege facts that make plausible that the [reporting system] will harm them in any way."
The plaintiffs also charged that the reporting system “chills protected speech in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments”. The plaintiffs failed to identify how they were harmed by the Bias Incident Reporting System, since there has been no disciplinary action taken nor is there any proof that students are at increased risk of disciplinary action due to the system.
Loaded terms like “critical race theory” are being used as a cover by conservatives who are against our community’s move towards a more equitable society. The fact is that CRT is not being taught in schools, and make no mistake, any group, organization, or individual who claims to be against CRT knows that fact. We are seeing the language change to attack “the tenets of CRT”, which means equity initiatives and policies. The Student Equity Ambassador Program and the Bias Incident Reporting System were created to combat documented cases of racism and bias that existed in LCPS. Loudoun4All supports the dismissal of this case and any case which would attack the schools’ ability to provide equity for our children. We believe all students have a right to a safe, welcoming environment in our school system.