DOJ Challenges LA School District Over Race Policy

Clear Facts

• The Department of Justice is intervening in a lawsuit targeting Los Angeles Unified School District’s race-based student classification system.
• The DOJ seeks to end LAUSD’s PHBAO program, which distributes resources based on whether neighborhoods are ‘Anglo’ or non-Anglo.
• The current policy means areas with less than 30% white residents receive added funding and preference for special admissions.

The Department of Justice moved to intervene in a federal case against Los Angeles Unified School District for using race to allocate school funding and manage admissions.

The district’s PHBAO policy, which singles out neighborhoods and students by race, is at the heart of the legal challenge.

“Treating Americans equally is not a suggestion — it is a core constitutional guarantee that educational institutions must follow,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in the release.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon described LAUSD’s classification as illegal and vowed to end these practices.

“It is unacceptable to treat students in the U.S., including in Los Angeles, differently based on their race, or their neighbors’ races. @TheJusticeDept’s @CivilRights will fight against illegal race-based sorting to protect the civil rights of ALL Americans, as our laws demand!”

Dhillon emphasized that racial discrimination is “unlawful and un-American,” adding that the Civil Rights Division will ensure all LAUSD students are treated equally.

According to the DOJ, the school district gives extra resources and admission benefits to campuses serving areas with less than 30% white residents, affecting over 600 schools while fewer than 100 are outside this program.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli noted, “Now in its sixth decade, LAUSD’s desegregation program has outlived its usefulness to the point of being unconstitutional. School districts must treat their students equally and no longer discriminate on the basis of race.”

The lawsuit was originally filed by the 1776 Project Foundation, with lead counsel Michael DiNardo condemning the program as unconstitutional.

“These policies are not just unfair — they’re unconstitutional,” DiNardo said. “What began as a temporary measure to address segregation has become a rigid system of racial favoritism that excludes thousands of students from equal opportunity.”

Los Angeles Unified’s spokesperson stated the district remains committed to equity but would not comment further due to ongoing litigation.

White students now make up around 10 percent of all LAUSD enrollments, showing a dramatic shift over the years.

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Full article at Daily Caller