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A sunlit sky greeted students Tuesday as they opened the 2010-11 school year. Those attending South Philadelphia High School, 2101 S. Broad St., are hoping to dispel the figurative clouds that darkened last year.
Their facility has instituted numerous changes, including the installation of a new principal. They likely have received their biggest assist, however, from the U.S. Department of Justice, which has found merit in a complaint against the School District of Philadelphia stemming from the December ’09 attacks at and around the school.
The DOJ has determined Aug. 27 that a January complaint from a national advocacy group possesses enough credibility to initiate discussions of further reform for the beleaguered school, according to published reports. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) filed the complaint on behalf of Asian students who became victims of violence Dec. 2 and 3. The reports reveal the district receivied notice from the federal government to have the school devise means to staunch the race-related issues that have diminished the Asian students’ sense of safety.
The district and the DOJ remain in discussion on how to resolve matters, with Michael Davis, the former’s general counsel, stating in a release “the district will not comment further.” A district spokesman did not reply to an e-mail by press time.
In light of the announcement and the beginning of the school year, a press conference united the South Philadelphia High School Asian Student Advocates Association (SASA), as well as students and families from the school, Sept. 1.
“We met mainly to discuss reactions to the [DOJ] announcement and remaining concerns,” Helen Gym, a volunteer with Asian Americans United (AAU), a 25-year-old organization seeking to encourage those of Asian ancestry to build their communities and unite to challenge oppression, said.
At the conference, Bach Tong, 16, who spent two years at the school before transferring this summer, discussed the unease he and others of Asian descent regularly felt.
“Racial slurs, food being thrown at us, cursing, all of that made us feel as if we were targets because of our race and immigrant statuses,” Tong, a Vietnam native who has lived in America since April ’08, said. “I hope I will be the last student to experience and suffer this type of violent school.”
Cecilia Chen hopes for the same. Chen, an AALDEF lawyer, filed an 11-page complaint Jan. 19, citing a violation of the students’ constitutional civil rights and the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974, whose six elements forbid all forms of discrimination.
“AALDEF, along with community groups, has cooperated with the DOJ during the course of its investigation,” Chen said of the time between the January filing and the August disclosure, although she could not say if the DOJ has found merit with the complaint as a whole or if it had touched only on certain aspects. “The DOJ interviewed around 20 Chinese and Vietnamese SPHS students and community advocates as part of our efforts to assist with the investigation.”
The investigation became necessary following the December incidents that required 13 Asian students to seek medical assistance for their injuries. The complaint contends groups of mostly African-American students perpetrated daylong rounds of attacks against 30 Asian students.
The resulting sense of insecurity prompted many Asian students to stage an eight-day boycott and led to the filing of the complaint, which alleges “deliberate and discriminatory indifference” against Asian students. It also highlighted more than two dozen assaults from the 2008-09 school year to urge investigation into the affairs at the school that the Pennsylvania Department of Education has consistently labeled “persistently dangerous.” It earned the distinction because its yearly number of dangerous incidents, such as robbery, rape, aggravated assault, possession of a weapon, has exceeded 2 percent of its enrollment.
Anticipating the complaint’s filing, the district took measures to improve the school’s safety. Its most eyecatching initiative involved installing 126 security cameras in addition to the 23 it had already been using. Former Principal LaGreta Brown resigned last May following critiques of her handling of the students’ complaints and the revelation she lacked proper certification.
According to Chen, AALDEF, one of six groups to support the students, filed its administrative complaint with the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
“Our goal in filing was to bring about much needed changes to SPHS after school officials failed to respond adequately to the harassment for years,” Chen said of the school, which in the ’09-10 school year had Asians comprise slightly more than 19 percent of its nearly 1,000-strong enrollment.
Earlier this year, the district agreed to use Student Problem Identification and Resolution of Issues Together (SPIRIT), a DOJ-sponsored conflict resolution program. As of March, Chen had no knowledge of whether the school implemented any of the student recommendations.
The school has, however, made modifications. Otis D. Hackney III became the fifth principal in six years July 1, bringing a no-nonsense approach to acceptance of diversity.
The Asian Arts Initiative, created in 1993 in response to community concerns about racial tension, will run new after-school arts programs. Kimlime Chek-Taylor joined the staff Sept. 3 as assistant principal. The Cambodian-born Chek-Taylor comes to the secondary institution having served as the dean of students at John H. Taggart School, 400 W. Porter St.
“We have a need for thoughtful and serious approaches to issues. We don’t want to be pandered to,” Gym said, citing a wait-and-see attitude on what she sees as “reactionary moves.”
“The most egregious element of this whole situation has been the district’s failing to create a safe environment. It has to look at the culture of the staff and the student body,” Gym said.
Though she cannot speak of the details of the DOJ’s procedure, Chen believes the department has completed its investigation. From it, she has hopes for ending Asian and anti-immigrant harassment.
“This includes, but is not limited to, clear safety procedures, language access for non-English speaking families, support for harassment victims and their families, race and ethnic studies, restorative justice programs, etc.,” Chen said.
Contact Staff Writer Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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