~ The Trayvon Martin Legacy ~

We have tracked this intent for 5 years as it evolved from theory, to hidden practice, to policy discussion, then presidential executive order, and now into full blown implementation.
Both Miami-Dade and Maryland Schools did it secretly. At least the Minneapolis School District is being open about their intentions, all former districts have done it without telling the public.
TrayvonMartinMySpacePgpic7Enhanced1Minneapolis will now institute a policy of disciplinary suspension for white students, but blacks and other minorities will not be suspended and allowed intolerant behavior to correct the disparate impact.
MINNESOTA –  Minneapolis Public Schools are implementing a new policy aimed at eliminating the gap between the races when it comes to suspensions. Nothing will change for white students, they will still be suspended at the discretion of each school’s principal. But for minority students, specifically black, Hispanic and Native American students, the Minneapolis Schools Superintendent’s office will personally review each case.
This new policy is part of an agreement with U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights announced last week after an investigation into why minority students made up such a high percentage suspended students in the past.
Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson told NPR, “I and all of my staff will start to review all non-violent suspensions of students of color, especially black boys, to understand why they’re being suspended so we can help intervene with teachers, student leaders and help give them the targeted support they need for these students.”
In a press release announcing the new policy, which begins Monday, Johnson’s office said, “Moving forward, every suspension of a black or brown student will be reviewed by the superintendent’s leadership team. The school district aims to more deeply understand the circumstances of suspensions with the goal of providing greater supports to the school, student or family in need. This team could choose to bring in additional resources for the student, family and school.”  (read more)
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If you want to see more articles about the ongoing research we have compiled into this subject use the search box → (in margin) and search “school discipline“.

Here’s an EXAMPLE –  It was our initial FOIA requests to the Miami Dade School Police Department which revealed the secret discipline and diversionary program Trayvon Martin was granted to avoid a criminal record.
Specifically Trayvon Martin’s criminal conduct was hidden behind school discipline. Stolen jewelry was recorded as random ‘found items’ (the jewelry just intentionally placed in storage with no investigation), his possession of marijuana was similarly obfuscated, and all of the incident reports were intentionally falsified by officials and School Resource Officer, Daryl Dunn, to avoid the Criminal Justice system.
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It is all well documented with sworn affidavits from the police department HERE. No-one has ever been held to account – It is just too politically dangerous an issue.
Well, apparently neighboring Broward County is also willing to jump on the diversionary bandwagon. This recent article outlines how Broward County wants to blur the lines of illegality in their efforts to avoid young black males being held criminally accountable for their behavior.
Flash Mob Participant MIAMI – One of the nation’s largest school districts has reached an agreement with law enforcement agencies and the NAACP to reduce the number of students being charged with crimes for minor offenses.
The agreement with Broward County Public Schools in Florida, which officials planned to announce Tuesday, is one of the first comprehensive plans bringing together district officials, police and the state attorney’s office to create an alternative to the zero-tolerance policies prevalent in many schools. It charges principals rather than school resource officers with being the primary decision makers in responding to student misbehavior.
The move is designed to cut down on what has become known as the “school-to-prison pipeline,” where students accused of offenses like disrupting class or loitering are suspended, arrested and charged with crimes.
Broward, the nation’s seventh largest district, had the highest number of school-related arrests in Florida in the 2011-2012 school year, according to state data. Seventy-one percent of the 1,062 arrests made were for misdemeanor offenses.
In this South Florida district and others across the country, minority students have been disproportionately arrested, sometimes for the same offenses their white peers received only a warning for. Nationwide, over 70 percent of students involved in school-related arrests or law enforcement referrals are black or Hispanic, according to U.S. Department of Education data.
“It’s pretty rare,” Michael Krezmien, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said of the agreement. “I think if every other school district did it that would be a great step forward.”
The new policy creates a matrix for district officials and school resource officers to follow when a student misbehaves. For non-violent misdemeanors like trespassing, harassment, incidents related to alcohol, possession of a misdemeanor amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, administrators are instructed to try and resolve the situation without an arrest. A variety of alternatives, like participation in a week-long counseling program, are designed to address and correct the student’s behavior. (continue reading)

Jesse Jackson must be smiling – This was one of his proposals. A proposal that was picked up by President Obama and led to an executive order to allow black male students to have independent disciplinary policies based on their race and gender.
White and Hispanic males are not afforded such a consideration.
This is one of those up-clicks on the thermostat which warms the water and eventually boils the frog. And few are paying attention. – READ THIS
Broward county is actually just following the Obama program.

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