When we think of students being discriminated against for the color of their skin, we might assume these students are children of color. After all, there is centuries worth of of evidence detailing the racism, prejudice, and discrimination these children have faced, often legislated by the entire United States government.
But one Wisconsin mother says her son’s school denied her dyslexic son additional support because he’s white.
More from LittleThings: White Male Student Sues Howard University For $2 Million Alleging Racial Discrimination
Colbey Decker claims that Green Bay Area School district prioritizes other racial minorities for access to special education services, the Daily Mail reports. Decker wrote a letter threatening legal action, according to The Telegraph. In it, she states that the school denied her son access to the literacy program for a full year because he is not a racial minority.
“The school implied to me that my child would already be receiving one-on-one reading support if he were Black, Hispanic, or First Nation,” she said. “I was speechless. I think we need to help every student in need, and using the guise of ‘diversity’ simply creates more division and hurts all students.”
More from LittleThings: Find Out If You Have Any Symptoms Of Dyslexia By Taking This Straightforward Test
Decker’s son was diagnosed with dyslexia in 2022. When he enrolled in the school district earlier this year, she sought additional resources. She provided documentation and made repeated requests for one-on-one reading interventions.
She said the school placed her son on a waiting list for a program that didn’t meet his specific needs. “This continued lack of adequate support has had a significant impact on her son. He struggles with reading across all subjects,” she said.
According to The Telegraph, Green Bay’s King Elementary School’s success plan reads: “high priority strategies” for literacy is “prioritizing additional resources to First Nations, Black, and Hispanic students.” This doesn’t mention if it’s at the expense of white students.
The school district was quick to make this point in defending itself. “We can state unequivocally that the district does not have a policy that includes the language included in the letter,” it claimed. “All district policies must be approved by the board of education and no such policy language exists … We plan to exhaust every legal option against this school district to end this discriminatory practice.”
Cory Brewer, an education counsel with the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, works on preparing legal action. “Early and individualized support for students with dyslexia is so important,” she said. “Delays by the Green Bay Area Public School District — with resources being prioritized for students of certain races — have placed a child with a dyslexia diagnosis on an uneven playing field.”
As for Decker, she’s pursuing legal action because she believes her son has already lost too much time. “It is my job as a mom to stand up for my children,” she told Daily Mail.
