Disproportionately hurts minorities and contradicts best evidence

Jul 24, 2020
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** Backlash to California’s School Closures
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Parent Union leads a chorus of backlash against California school closures: In an OC Register op-ed online today and in print on Sunday, Cecilia Iglesias, Founder and President of CPC’s Parent Union, describes how Gov. Newsom’s order to close all schools in the state 1) disproportionately hurts minority kids and 2) is not grounded in science:

According to a recent report ([link removed]) from the National Academy of Sciences, "Without in-person instruction, schools risk children falling behind academically and exacerbating educational inequities."

And California's minority students don't have any further to fall. The latest standardized test data ([link removed]) reveals that just one in five black students in the state meets math standards and just one in three is proficient in reading. Latinos met grade standards for math and reading at only 28 and 41 percent, respectively. If schools were hamstringing minorities' educations before Covid-19, they're crippling them now.

A close examination of the data suggests that schools can indeed safely reopen. Children face less risk from Covid-19 than from the flu. In fact, no California child ([link removed]) under the age of 18 has died from the disease.

It's not only deaths. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics ([link removed]) , "the preponderance of evidence indicates that children and adolescents are less likely to be symptomatic and less likely to have severe disease resulting from SARS-CoV-2 infection." A recent study ([link removed]) published in the journal Pediatrics also concludes that children rarely transmit the disease. After Europe reopened schools this spring, there was no associated increase ([link removed]) in cases. Some scientists believe that children act as a "brake"
([link removed]) on infections.

The CDC agrees: The CDC issued guidance ([link removed]) on Thursday arguing that schools should reopen: “School closures have disrupted normal ways of life for children and parents, and they have had negative health consequences on our youth. CDC is prepared to work with K-12 schools to safely reopen while protecting the most vulnerable.... The best available evidence indicates that COVID-19 poses relatively low risks to school-aged children."

The LA Times quantifies this disproportionate impact: The Times reports ([link removed]) that school closures hurt minorities most. During the virtual schooling experiment this spring, “low-income students and Black and Latino students showed participation rates between 10 and 20 percentage points lower than white and Asian peers.” In fact, “More than 50,000 Black and Latino middle and high school students in Los Angeles did not regularly participate in the school system’s main platform for virtual classrooms after campuses closed in March, a reflection of the deep disparities faced by students of color amid the COVID-19 pandemic and of the difficulties ahead as L.A. Unified prepares for continued online learning.”

Will and David offer their commentary and analysis: On the latest episode ([link removed]) of National Review’s Radio Free California, David and Will discuss this racial impact of closing schools as well as food fights over McDonald’s, Trader Joe’s, and foie gras.

Give education funding to parents and let them decide: Over at Reason, Corey DeAngelis argues ([link removed]) that education funds shouldn’t prop up closed schools but rather go directly to parents – a position that CPC’s Parent Union supports. “If public schools can’t reopen, or aren’t equipped to provide adequate education online, families shouldn’t be forced to pay for them. Think of it this way: If a Walmart doesn’t reopen, families can take their food stamps elsewhere. If a school doesn’t reopen, families should similarly be able to take their education dollars elsewhere.”

President Trump agrees: On Thursday, President Trump reiterated his support ([link removed]) for reopening schools and said that those that don’t should turn over their funds directly to parents. “If schools do not reopen, the funding should go to parents to send their children to the public, private, charter, religious or home school,” said Trump. “All families should be empowered to make the decision that is right for their circumstance.”

Taking cues from teachers unions: As CPC contributor Larry Sand writes ([link removed]) , Gov. Newsom’s school closures were a foregone conclusion after teachers unions gave their marching orders: “The writing was on the chalkboard when the California Teachers Association released a statement on July 8^th asserting that, due to coronavirus concerns, schools should not open in the fall. The following day, the United Teachers of Los Angeles echoed a similar sentiment, but was far more detailed and blunter than CTA.”

Filing suit: Attorney Harmeet Dhillon, CEO of the Center for American Liberty, filed a lawsuit ([link removed]) this week against Gov. Gavin Newsom calling for California schools to reopen this fall. "All of these children we saw in the spring semester of this year were failed by the state of California and its educational plans," said Dhillon. "Even parents with the most motivated and academically successful children reported depression, anxiety, withdrawal, behavioral issues, a lack of motivation."

Public “servants”? CPC contributor Edward Ring is out with a new analysis ([link removed]) of California public-sector compensation: “For all 'miscellaneous' (non-safety) full-time employees working for a California city, the average rate of pay and benefits was $130,719 in 2019… This means that in California, non-safety city employees make at least 77 percent more than the private sector workers they serve.” When additional factors like time off is factored in, “it is reasonable to assume that non-safety public sector employees make roughly twice what private-sector employees make in California.”

Profile on Prop 65: The LA Times covered ([link removed]) the joke that is California’s Prop 65, the law responsible for those cancer and reproductive harm warning labels that are found on everything from flip-flops to golf club covers. Like many ridiculous “consumer protection” laws, Prop. 65 is driven by trial attorneys who get rich off the scam that can destroy small businesses. Writes the Times, “Attorney fees account for nearly three-quarters of the more than $300 million that has been paid out in Proposition 65 settlements since 2000, according to state data. The lion’s share of that goes to a handful of habitual litigants, several of which amount to opaque front groups with closer ties to attorneys than to California consumers... Meanwhile, shoppers have grown inured to the warnings.”

CalPERS’ risky bet: CalPERS is looking to recoup losses from the Covid-19-induced recession by leveraging some of its assets to invest in private equity. This strategy, the OC Register edit board argues ([link removed]) , “is so risky that some analysts hear echoes from the last recession.”

Put a lime in it: Bay Area teen Briones Bedell was able to score another win for cancel culture this week by getting Trader Joe’s to change its branding. The company “labels some of its ethnic foods with modifications of ‘Joe’ that belies a narrative of exoticism that perpetuates harmful stereotypes. For example, ‘Trader Ming’s’ is used to brand the chain’s Chinese food, ‘Arabian Joe’ brands Middle Eastern foods, ‘Trader José’ brands Mexican foods, ‘Trader Giotto’s’ is for Italian food, and ‘Trader Joe San’ brands their Japanese cuisine,” wrote ([link removed]) the 17-year-old. This “branding is racist because it exoticizes other cultures—it presents ‘Joe’ as the default ‘normal’ and the other characters falling outside of it.”

Sticking to script, Trader Joe’s apologized and said that it would remove the offending names.

I thought that a popular Mexican-style lager might have to change its name in the wake of the coronavirus. But I never dreamt it would be Trader José’s Premium Lager.

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Jordan Bruneau
Communications Director
[email protected] (mailto:[email protected])


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