Tucson, Arizona Superintendent Risking $14M for Mexican-American, African-American Programs Despite Ban on Ethnic Studies

A superintendent of the Tucson Unified School District is authorizing an expansion of ethnic studies in Arizona despite a law being signed banning the studies from being taught in the school district.

Superintendent H.T. Sanchez is risking $14 million in student aid by expanding programs that mostly teach Mexican-American and African-American studies, Fox News Latino reports.

Back in 2010, the program was first canceled in a case that said ethnic studies "designed for students of a particular ethnic group, promoted resentment or advocate ethnic solidarity over treating pupils as individuals, or promoted to overthrow the U.S. government."

Former Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed the ban into law.

The banning of Mexican American Studies and Native American Studies in Tucson case will proceed before the Ninth Circuit of Court Appeals Monday, according to Censored News.

The plaintiffs in the case state the elimination of Mexican-American Studies in public schools is discriminatory, unconstitutional and a violation of the First Amendment.

"The banning explicitly and pointedly shows it is not only Mexican American Studies and people and so-called illegal immigrants that are targeted but Indigenous studies and people as a whole," Simon J. Ortiz, Regents professor at the Arizona State University Department of English, American Indian Studies, said.

Ortiz added that he was extremely "stunned and very shocked and very pissed off that the Tucson Unified School District would ban Mexican-American Studies and books" that teach students the history of ethnic backgrounds.

"Rethinking Columbus: The Next Five Hundred Years," which includes works by indigenous Native authors, is on the list of banned books.

"The original edition made educational history by introducing a startling new view of Columbus," Howard Zinn, author of "A People's History of the United States," said. "In the revised edition we get even richer material, a marvelous compendium of history, literature, original sources, commentary ... an exciting treasure for teachers, students, and the general public."

Plaintiffs in the appeal case include teachers and students.