U.S. District Judge Kristi Johnson last month ended federal oversight of Rankin County schools, finding district leaders were not maintaining policies that were remnants of segregation, Mississippi Today reported. The decision freed the district from a desegregation order that dated to a 1967 lawsuit and had been in place since 1970.
Former student and plaintiff Janie McLaurin told Mississippi Today she joined the 1967 suit to ensure fair treatment for Black students and teachers. She recounted racial slurs and physical abuse she faced while integrating schools and said she told her children about those experiences so they would understand what earlier generations had fought for. “Rankin County schools just took a step backwards,” she said.
Johnson acknowledged racial disparities in hiring, enrollment, discipline and course selection, but said the issues stemmed from socioeconomic factors, residential choices and other race-neutral reasons, according to her ruling. The judge told the court the district is not required to maintain perfect racial balance and cited other districts with less integration that have been released from court orders.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs challenged the release at a September hearing. Katrina Feldkamp, counsel with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, argued the district still enforces discriminatory policies, particularly in discipline, and that intradistrict transfers and staff assignments have contributed to resegregation, Mississippi Today reported. Education equity researcher Erica Frankenberg testified that transfers had shifted student composition at schools such as Pisgah, noting 24 white students transferred to Pisgah High School in 2022-23.
Alumni and former staff described punitive discipline and exclusion from activities. Jeuan Brown said he was punished without due process and later transferred to an alternative school after defending himself. Ma’Kesha Adams, a former district employee and daughter of the lawsuit’s lead plaintiff, said she was placed on an improvement plan after a white student accused her of racism and was denied access to complaint documentation. Tagira Bush testified she felt isolated as one of few Black members of a high school cheer squad and said district staff would not waive participation fees for her mother. Behavioral health researcher Jamilia Blake told the court she found a “clear pattern of racial bias” in district suspension data; Mississippi Today reported Black students made up 25.7% of enrollment in 2023-24 and were suspended at twice the rate of white students.
Rankin County NAACP leaders and parents said they fear losing court oversight will leave disparities unaddressed. Angela English, branch president of the Rankin County NAACP, called the decision “very personal” and warned against letting children “suffer wrongdoing.” Parent Deidra Moore said she was alarmed by testimony that attributed high suspension rates to socioeconomic factors and expressed concern about underrepresentation of Black students in gifted programs. District officials have said they will implement supportive measures, but Johnson concluded the evidence did not show systemic racial discrimination in extracurricular participation, according to court records and testimony cited by Mississippi Today.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
