NAACP Legal Defense Fund files federal civil rights complaint against Carroll Independent School District

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The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund on Tuesday filed a federal civil rights complaint against the Carroll Independent School District for failing to protect students from discrimination based on their race, sex or gender identity.

The complaint was filed with the U.S. Department of Education on behalf of two groups formed by Black Carroll ISD parents and students in the affluent North Texas suburb: Cultural & Racial Equity for Every Dragon and Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition.

It is the fourth such complaint against the district.

The Department of Education already had opened three investigations into allegations of racial and gender discrimination at Carroll ISD in Southlake in November 2021. The investigations came about a month after a Carroll ISD administrator asked teachers to provide an “opposing” view of the Holocaust in order to comply with a new Texas state law that was passed during last year's legislative session with little guidance, prompting confusion among Texas educators.

“My profound hope is that this complaint will finally wake CISD up to the reality that ensuring a safe learning environment is not only their moral responsibility but also their legal obligation,” Russell Maryland, a member of Cultural & Racial Equity for Every Dragon, said in a statement.

Carroll ISD, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, came into the spotlight three years ago after a viral video of white high school students chanting a racist slur prompted community members to share stories of harassment, NBC News reported.

In August 2020, the school introduced plans for diversity training and increased accountability, efforts that have been effectively blocked by conservative organizing.

On at least two occasions, in 2018 and 2019, white students in the district were chanting racial slurs on video, according to the summary of Tuesday's complaint. The complainants claim that the district has declined to take action and acknowledge the “systemic nature of the problem.”

The full complaint was not made readily available. The district did not immediately respond to a request for comment.