Trump Administration Scraps Guidance That Protects Students From Racist Discipline

The guidance was designed to stymie the school-to-prison pipeline. Now it’s gone.

The Department of Education and the Department of Justice officially rescinded a piece of Obama-era guidance designed to protect students from racist school discipline on Friday. The repeal comes after the Trump administration’s Federal Commission on School Safety, chaired by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, released a report earlier in the week recommending the withdrawal of this guidance.

The move was immediately blasted by civil rights advocates and Democratic leaders, who say it represents a retreat from the protection of vulnerable student groups, who receive disproportionately harsh school punishments compared to their peers. In the Federal Commission on School Safety report, Trump officials framed the rescission as one that would give schools more local control over their disciplinary practices and keep students safe from violent or disruptive peers.

But according to civil rights advocates, there is scant evidence that the guidance ever made schools less safe, and repealing the guidance will help perpetuate the school-to-prison pipeline. The school-to-prison pipeline is the idea that students who get pushed out of schools, via suspensions or expulsions, are more likely to end up in the criminal justice system.

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