USA Africa Dialogue Series - University of Texas at Austin sued over 'Eyes of Texas'

 

 

KUT Daily for Sept. 7, 2021

‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌    ♥ Donate     Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2021     Students hang out in the lobby of UT Austin's Engineering Education and Research Center on the first day of classes last month. Photo by Michael Minasi/KUT     Texas NAACP, Students File Federal Civil Rights Complaint Over UT Austin's 'Eyes Of Texas' The Texas chapter of the NAACP, along with the civil rights organization's University of Texas at Austin chapter and a group of anonymous students, has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights alleging UT Austin is creating a "hostile environment" for Black students by continuing to play the "The Eyes of Texas" alma mater song at university events. The complaint, filed Friday morning, alleges that Black students have been denied full benefits of Longhorn student life because the song is an official part of the university, "despite its racially offensive origin, context and meaning." The song premiered at a minstrel show in the early 1900s where students likely wore blackface. Despite pushback, university officials have said they are going to keep the song as their alma mater, concluding in a report issued earlier this year that the song "had no racist intent." The complaint, provided to The Texas Tribune by the filers, says the university has failed to respond to racial harassment against Black students and others who oppose the song, violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and argues the university's decision to create a separate marching band for students who do not want to play "The Eyes of Texas" violates equal protections afforded under the Fourteenth Amendment. This past spring, the UT Austin Butler School of Music announced the creation of a new band in which students would not be required to play the song after members of the Longhorn Band refused to play it last fall due to its history and origins. Students in the Longhorn band are required to play the song. UT Austin did not respond to a request for comment. A U.S. Department of Education spokesperson said it does not acknowledge complaints unless they have been accepted for investigation. The department updates its list of investigations on a monthly basis. This latest move by the local NAACP chapters came one day before the start of the football season. The Longhorn Band plays the song, and those games have been where much of the controversy surrounding the song played out. A little over a year ago, a group of UT football players called for the school to discontinue using the song. The debate touched many parts of the university community, from athletics and academics to fundraising and student organizations. On Saturday, the band played the song and players stayed on the field for the postgame singalong tradition without a major issue. Football coach Steve Sarkisian said in January that "'The Eyes of Texas' is our school song. We're going to sing that song. We're going to sing that proudly." But the complaint signals the continued desire among some students and alumni beyond the football stadium to push administrators to discontinue using the song as UT Austin's alma mater, despite the university's insistence that it will remain. Last month, a group of students protested the song at an event welcoming new students to campus for the fall semester. Some students also staged a walkout at graduation last spring when the song played. Gary Bledsoe, president of the Texas NAACP, said the groups initially tried to work with university leaders to get them to do away with the song, but were unsuccessful. They decided to file the complaint because students said the campus climate surrounding the song had gotten increasingly tense throughout the spring semester. Al-Nasser Lawal, a UT Austin senior and president of the UT-Austin chapter of the NAACP, said Black student groups also met with administrators to discuss their concerns with the song without success. "As Black students, we kind of feel as if it's not like our voices are heard," Lawal said in an interview. "The main objective of the administration and the campus is just to appease their wealthy donors so that they can continue to get that funding, and that they don't really have our best interests at heart." They argue the song is unavoidable as it is sung after sporting events, at graduation and from the UT Tower bells every evening. Bledsoe said students involved chose to remain anonymous because they feared retaliation by the university. ​​​​​​​More from The Texas Tribune         COVID-19 Update Confirmed cases in Austin/Travis County: 107,248 (+1,260 since Friday)        Abortion rights advocates protest Texas' new restrictive abortion law, in front of the Texas Capitol last week. Photo by Michael Minasi/KUT   Justice Department Promises To Protect People Who Seek Abortions In Texas U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday that the Justice Department will protect people trying to obtain or provide abortions in Texas, where one of the country's most restrictive abortion laws went into effect last week. Senate Bill 8 — often called the "heartbeat bill" by supporters — effectively bans abortions after six weeks, well before many women even know they are pregnant. Physicians who specialize in reproductive health say the term "fetal heartbeat" used in the legislation is misleading because there is no cardiovascular system or a functional heart six weeks into pregnancy. Garland said his department will urgently explore all options to challenge the law. In the meantime, he said it will continue to protect the rights of people seeking access to abortion under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act of 1994. The FACE Act prohibits the use or threat of force and physical obstruction that injures, intimidates, or interferes with a person seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services. It also prohibits intentional property damage of a facility providing reproductive health services. "The department will provide support from federal law enforcement when an abortion clinic or reproductive health center is under attack. We have reached out to U.S. Attorneys' Offices and FBI field offices in Texas and across the country to discuss our enforcement authorities," the statement explained. "The department has consistently obtained criminal and civil remedies for violations of the FACE Act since it was signed into law in 1994, and it will continue to do so now," it added. Garland's vow came less than a week after the Texas law took effect. Critics, including the Biden administration, said the law was at odds with the U.S. Supreme Court's precedents. The court has twice refused to challenge the legality of the law but its decision on Sept. 1 left the door open for future legal challenges. Critics also condemned the law for deputizing private citizens to sue anyone who performs an abortion or "aids and abets" a procedure. More from Texas Public Radio Burnet CISD Closes Campuses, Lago Vista ISD Moves High School Classes Online Amid COVID-19 Spikes The Burnet Consolidated Independent School District has closed all campuses to students and the Lago Vista Independent School District moved all of its high school students to virtual learning on Tuesday because of spikes in COVID-19 cases. Burnet CISD officials said many students and staff members have been absent recently. The district reported 92 positive cases last week and 121 the week before, according to its COVID dashboard. Burnet canceled all extracurricular activities and practices for Tuesday and Wednesday while custodial staff deep-clean campuses. District officials said they hope to reopen them for classes Thursday. The district operates two high schools, one middle school and three elementary schools. Meanwhile, Lago Vista ISD said it moved high school classes online because of the growing number of COVID-19 cases and a lack of substitute teachers. Officials reported 58 positive cases last week, according to their COVID dashboard. The district also canceled extracurricular activities for the rest of the week. Officials said they expect to resume in-person classes Monday. Lago Vista Middle School, Lago Vista Intermediate School and Lago Vista Elementary School will continue to operate as usual. Students in Central Texas returned to in-person classes last month as the delta variant fueled a new outbreak of COVID-19 cases. Some districts like Hays, Leander and Round Rock have already resorted to temporarily closing down classrooms where clusters of infections have been identified. Several school districts have required that students, staff members and visitors wear face covering on campuses and buses despite Gov. Greg Abbott's order banning mask mandates. The Burnet and Lago Vista districts have not required masks.       Here's What's In Texas Republicans' New Voting Law   It's Time For A Flu Shot. Here's What You Need To Know   En Español     Más De 650 Nuevas Leyes Estatales Entraron En Vigor Esta Semana. Estas Son 13 Que Deberías Conocer.   Capital Metro Busca Establecer Su Propio Departamento De Policía     Heard On Air ... The Latino civil rights group LULAC filed a lawsuit in federal court today seeking to stop Texas' new voting law. It alleges the law is an effort to "stem the growing tide of minority voter participation" by weaponizing false claims of voter fraud. The group's president, Domingo Garcia, said he takes issue with provisions that eliminate drive-thru voting and place new restrictions on assisting voters. "We should not make it a crime to help a senior citizen vote by mail, by filling out an application for an absentee ballot or helping them with their ballot," he said. Read more about the new law here. The Travis County Sheriff's Office is reporting another 18 positive coronavirus infections among employees this week — about the same number of infections reported among workers for the past six weeks. But infections are going down within the jail's inmate population: Just four new infections were reported among inmates. Only two weeks ago, there were 30 new infections. There are now nearly 300 inmates in isolation in Travis County jails because of the coronavirus. The American Legion Hunter-Morris Memorial Post 911 in Cedar Park is hosting a remembrance event Saturday on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The event will begin at 8 a.m. in Veterans Memorial Park in Cedar Park and feature speakers, including Cedar Park Mayor Corbin Van Arsdale and members of the city's police and fire departments. Find more information here.           Local reporting has never been more important. Please support our efforts by making a donation today.   SUPPORT US   Were you forwarded this email? Never miss a story by signing up for the KUT News Daily newsletter.  Subscribe   Find news, information, and events 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by visiting us at KUT.org or on our Mobile App 512-471-1631 | Contact Us

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