U.S. Federal Discrimination Law and Language and Culture Restrictions in K–12 Private Schools

Abstract

Section 1981 prohibits discrimination concerning the right to contract, and Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of the basis of race and national origin. The two cases that form the basis for the discussion in this article—Silva v. St. Anne Catholic School and Doe v. Kamehameha Schools—address whether culture and language can affect the legality of policies that might otherwise appear to be discriminatory.

Language and Culture Restrictions and Discrimination in K–12 Private Schools: An Australian Perspective

“…A In a companion article (Mawdsley & Cumming, 2013) we considered legal issues in language and culture in private schooling in two U.S. contexts: Silva v. St. Anne Catholic School (2009), where a school English-only language policy prevents students from Hispanic backgrounds speaking Hispanic at school, justified for maintenance of school order, and Doe v. Kamehameha Schools (2010), where admission policy restricts students' cultural background to promote educational outcomes and preserve Hawaiian culture and language. In Silva, legal issues included compliance with U.S. federal antidiscrimination legislation, as the school was in receipt of federal funding.…”