Lawsuit Seeks to Force Desegregation of Twin Cities Schools

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Seven families and a community organization are suing the state of Minnesota, saying it has failed to adequately educate poor and minority students in the Twin Cities.

The lawsuit filed in Hennepin County District Court says the state has enacted policies that have created schools with a disproportionate number of poor and minority children. And that those schools are academically underperforming more integrated schools.

The Star Tribune reports the plaintiffs want a judge to force the state to desegregate public schools across Minneapolis and St. Paul. The plaintiffs are represented by Daniel and John Shulman who represented the NAACP 20 years ago when it sued the state on similar grounds. The case led to a state program that allows low-income students from Minneapolis to enroll in suburban districts.