LOCAL NEWS

DOJ investigation uncovers ‘serious and widespread racial harassment’ in Utah school district

Oct 21, 2021, 6:24 PM | Updated: Oct 22, 2021, 6:12 am

FARMINGTON, Utah — The Davis School District agreed to take steps to address widespread racial harassment found in an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. It also found the school district persistently failed to respond to reports of race-based harassment.

The investigation found “widespread racial harassment of Black and Asian American students” including hundreds of instances of the use of racial slurs and epithets and physical assaults at dozens of schools.

The report said “Black students reported striking similar experiences throughout the district.” Those who attended school in other districts said things were worse in the Davis School District.

Abuses included:

  • Davis disciplined Black students more harshly than white peers for similar behavior
  • Davis denied Black students the ability for form student groups but supported similar requests by other students
  • Persistent failures to respond to reports of race-based harassment
  • Use of racial slurs against Black students including saying they had dirty skin or their skin looked like feces
  • Taunted students with animal names or noises, including apes
  • Touching or pulling student’s hair without permission
  • Non-Black students demanded an “N-word pass” allowing use of the N-word with impunity and threatening or physically assaulting those who denied the demand
  • Repeatedly referencing slavery or lynching
  • Telling Black students to pick cotton or saying “you are my slave” and such harassment increased when teaching about slavery took place, which some Black students felt was not done in a respectful manner
  • Hundreds of documented uses of the N-word

“These incidents took place on a daily or weekly basis. Some students, now in middle and high school, said they had experienced racial harassment each year since they were kindergarteners,” the report stated.

At times, the District told Black and Asian American students not to be so sensitive or made excuses for harassing students by explaining that they were “not trying to be racist,” the report states.

Students didn’t like the abuse and said they disliked attending school and missed school sometimes because of racial harassment, the report said.

“Parents and students across the District told us that these forms of harassment were so commonplace, they expected them to happen.”

“Some students said that they told teachers or other staff when they experienced harassment initially, but when the staff did not respond, the students became discouraged and doubted that staff would ever intervene. Many Black students said the harassment was so pervasive and happened so often in front of adults that they concluded school employees condoned the behavior and believed reporting it further would be futile.”

The school district agreed to retain a consultant to review anti-discrimination procedures. Among other steps, the district agreed to:

  • create a new department to handle complaints of race discrimination;
  • train staff on how to identify, investigate, and respond to complaints of racial harassment and discriminatory discipline practices;
  • inform students and parents of how to report harassment and discrimination;
  • create a centralized, electronic reporting system to track and manage complaints and Davis’s response to complaints;
  • implement student, staff, and parent training and education on identifying and preventing race discrimination, including discriminatory harassment;
  • analyze and review discipline data and amend policies to ensure non-discriminatory enforcement of discipline policies; and
  • develop a districtwide procedure to assess requests for student groups and treat such requests fairly

“Pervasive racial harassment and other forms of racial discrimination in public schools violate the Constitution’s most basic promise of equal protection,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division. “This agreement will help generate the institutional change necessary to keep Black and Asian-American students safe.

The investigation started in July 2019, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

A summary of the findings of the investigation and a summary of the agreement are below:

DOJ Davis County School District Investigation Findings by LarryDCurtis on Scribd

Dept. of Justice Davis County by LarryDCurtis on Scribd

Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov/.

Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and additional information about the work of the Educational Opportunities Section is available at https://www.justice.gov/crt/educational-opportunities-section.

KSL 5 TV Live

Local News

Man being taken on stretcher to an ambulance figures blurred...

Lauren Steinbrecher

West Jordan man trying ‘to be funny’ allegedly shot and killed best friend

Investigators believe a joke between friends turned into the shooting death of a West Jordan man. The fatal mistake is also turning into a message police hope every gun owner can hear.

6 hours ago

Matt Gephardt meeting with Denis Hawkins after a rental car company after they ignored his calls fo...

Matt Gephardt

Get Gephardt helps Spanish Fork man clear up insurance claim for rental car damage

Get Gephardt clears up an international rental car insurance standstill.

6 hours ago

small housing units...

Debbie Worthen

Utah’s micro-shelter pilot program gets extension to help homeless

A micro-shelter pilot program will stay in place for at least six more months.

7 hours ago

A trench used for training a team of firefighters to be a part of Utah County's Special Response Te...

Shelby Lofton

Heavy Rescue school students respond to real-life emergency during trench collapse training

A team of firefighter students training to be on a Special Response Team rescued a man buried in a trench collapse the week they'd been studying trenches.

7 hours ago

The Cache County Council took up the e-mail controversy...

Mike Anderson

A single text stirs political fallout in Cache County election

A text message is blowing up into a whole lot of political fallout in Cache County.

8 hours ago

A map shows where the Chief Toquer reservoir will connect to the Ash Creek Reservoir....

Cary Schwanitz

Feds pour $7 million into southern Utah water pipeline project

A project to build a new pipeline that will run from the Ash Creek Reservoir to the Chief Toquer Reservoir received $7 million from the bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

8 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

Women hold card for scanning key card to access Photocopier Security system concept...

Les Olson

Why Printer Security Should Be Top of Mind for Your Business

Connected printers have vulnerable endpoints that are an easy target for cyber thieves. Protect your business with these tips.

Modern chandelier hanging from a white slanted ceiling with windows in the backgruond...

Lighting Design

Light Up Your Home With These Top Lighting Trends for 2024

Check out the latest lighting design trends for 2024 and tips on how you can incorporate them into your home.

Technician woman fixing hardware of desktop computer. Close up....

PC Laptops

Tips for Hassle-Free Computer Repairs

Experiencing a glitch in your computer can be frustrating, but with these tips you can have your computer repaired without the stress.

Close up of finger on keyboard button with number 11 logo...

PC Laptops

7 Reasons Why You Should Upgrade Your Laptop to Windows 11

Explore the benefits of upgrading to Windows 11 for a smoother, more secure, and feature-packed computing experience.

Stylish room interior with beautiful Christmas tree and decorative fireplace...

Lighting Design

Create a Festive Home with Our Easy-to-Follow Holiday Prep Guide

Get ready for festive celebrations! Discover expert tips to prepare your home for the holidays, creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for unforgettable moments.

Battery low message on mobile device screen. Internet and technology concept...

PC Laptops

9 Tips to Get More Power Out of Your Laptop Battery

Get more power out of your laptop battery and help it last longer by implementing some of these tips from our guide.

DOJ investigation uncovers ‘serious and widespread racial harassment’ in Utah school district