A lawsuit filed on Wednesday in Massachusetts state court alleges that the state is maintaining racially segregated schools, concentrating Black and Latino students in high-poverty districts with fewer opportunities. The plaintiffs, including nine students and four community organisations from Springfield, Holyoke, Boston, Lawrence, Brockton, Lynn, and Worcester, argue that assigning students to schools based solely on where they live replicates housing segregation patterns.
The lawsuit challenges the state's practice of district-based enrolment, which the plaintiffs say traps students of colour in under-resourced schools while bordering more affluent, predominantly white districts remain inaccessible. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education responded that it lacks authority to change district boundaries or compel cross-district enrolment, but noted investments in closing graduation gaps and supporting high-poverty schools.
A 2024 state advisory council report found that 63% of all Massachusetts schools are segregated or intensely segregated, with schools serving higher concentrations of students of colour showing worse outcomes in graduation and college matriculation. Jillian Lenson, senior attorney at Lawyers for Civil Rights, said the state has failed to fulfil its constitutional duty to provide adequate and equal education for Black and Latino students.
The lawsuit seeks to compel the state to address disparities arising from residence-based school assignment, but does not demand mandatory integration. Instead, it calls for investment in evidence-backed practices such as expanding regional magnet programmes and increasing funding for under-resourced schools. GeDá Jones Herbert of Brown's Promise noted that existing voluntary transfer programmes are too small and complex to ensure equal access.
Similar state-level litigation has emerged elsewhere, including a 2018 New Jersey case and a 2015 Minnesota case, both challenging segregation rooted in residential patterns. These cases reflect a shift toward using state constitutions to address segregation after federal desegregation efforts waned, following Supreme Court rulings that limited race-based integration tools.
