ACT NOW for Racism-Free Schools!

Research shows that students of color experience, on average, 5 acts of racial harassment every day. 1.6 million students were directly targeted by hate speech in a single year, like the student in southern Illinois whose track coach used hateful racial language—but wasn’t disciplined until the victim’s friends and family protested outside the school. In a Teach Plus flash poll, two thirds of teachers responding said racial harassment was a serious concern and that schools were not doing enough to address it. Racial harassment has a negative effect on the academic achievement and wellbeing of students, and hinders the state’s efforts to recruit and retain teachers of color. 

Current protections against racial harassment are not enough. Hate crimes in schools increased 81% from 2016 to 2018, with race-based hate crimes making up roughly half of all cases. Yet 87% of federal race-based complaints are dismissed, and the total number of reports decreased in 2020 and 2021 because victims and their advocates fear retaliation or don’t trust their reports will be effective. 

In response to this staggering data, teachers across the state developed the Racism-Free Schools Act, offering a reasonable solution without added cost to districts. Schools already have similar protections and training in place for bullying and sexual harassment, and this bill extends those policies to race-based harassment. Because schools already contract with outside services for policy development and training, the cost of meeting these requirements is negligible. And this is training teachers want - in a 2022 flash poll, 96% of teachers polled were in favor of mandated training to identify and address racial harassment. 

The Racism-Free Schools Act creates a clear definition of racial harassment; requires policies, communication, and training for staff at every school; and clarifies the difference between bullying and harassment. It already has bipartisan support, and I urge you to add your voice on behalf of our students and teachers.

For more information, or to join our growing coalition of supporters and organizations, visit our website at racismfreeschools.org and follow us on Facebook​, Twitter, and Instagram.