Victories

Victory in the Lynn v. Comfort Case at the US Court of Appeals

JALSA members instrumental in important desegregation case upheld in federal appellate court.

Many years ago, JALSA members were instrumental in establishing the Massachusetts Coalition for Equitable Education (MCEE). Our concern over the dismantling of desegregation programs in schools was the catalyst for the formation of this coalition. Notwithstanding increasing concerns about the achievement gap and recognition of great disparities in resources and technological equipment for minority students, conservative governors and educators were rushing to end racial fairness policies in school assignments or other recognition of racial discrimination in educational course opportunities.

Lynn v. Comfort was an important case protecting a voluntary integration program in the City of Lynn. Jalsa congratulates Richard Cole of the Office of the Attorney General who shepherded this voluntary desegregation/integration case, beginning many years ago following a meeting with our JALSA and MCEE members. The City of Lynn stood up to a challenge from Boston Children's First, the same group that attacked the racial fairness guidelines in the Boston public schools. The Boston School Committee had capitulated to a similar lawsuit by dropping the racial guidelines that assured that all students had an equal opportunity to attend the schools considered by parents to be most desirable, irrespective of geographic housing segregation of racial groups. The City of Lynn, which had put in place earlier a broad program to ensure integration of the schools, including the use of race as one component during voluntary reassignments, stood firm and defended their program in the lawsuit.

The Lynn program was upheld initially in the federal district court, Judge Nancy Gertner presiding, and was upheld in late June in the US Court of Appeals. Judge Gertner's written opinion was particularly compelling, and courageous, in its upholding of a voluntary program to maintain integrated classrooms in the K through 12th grade context, an area not previously resolved in judicial cases.

"The suit illustrates," says MCEE chair and JALSA Board member Mary Ann Hardenbergh, "the need for the reauthorization of public monies under Chapter 636 to ensure that districts can offer magnet schools, professional development for educators, and other programs to ensure the ability of students to attend school together and to learn to know and work with diverse student populations."

JALSA had submitted two briefs before the initial 3 judge panel at the US Court of Appeals, one on behalf of education groups (including Citizens for Public Schools and Massachusetts Coalition for Educational Equity) prepared by Hobart F. Popick and David B. Broughel of Day, Berry, and Taft, and one on behalf of interfaith and civil rights groups prepared by our JALSA member Ed Barshak. When the case went to the full bench, our members Allan Roth and Joel Eigerman prepared our JALSA brief on behalf of a broad group of earlier amici: religious groups, educational coalitions, and some civil rights groups, including west coast colleagues at the Progressive Jewish Alliance. Additional help on our brief had been provided by all our education consultants, especially members Sumner Z. Kaplan, Mary Ann Hardenbergh, Peggy Wiesenberg, CPS staff Marilyn Segal and Paul Dunphy, with important education statistics provided by Anne Wheelock and Steve Backman. We thank all of you.

And special thanks and congratulations to the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights -- led by our JALSA Advisory Board member Nadine Cohen, who co-ordinated all the amicus briefs and Julie Patino -- who prepared a very important amicus brief on behalf of civil rights groups.

Victory in the Wirzburger v. Galvin Case

For many years, JALSA members have provided leadership in protecting the Massachusetts constitutional prohibition against public monies going to private and religious schools and the constitutional limitations on what issues can go on the public ballot as an initiative or referendum.

The Wirzburger case deal with a proposed ballot referendum to overturn the Massachusetts constitutional prohibitions on aid to private and religious schools. The key issue in the case was a clause in the Massachusetts constitution that excludes initiatives and referenda that deal with religion, jurisdiction of the courts, and certain other issues. The Attorney General had refused to certify the proposed ballot item because of these constitutional exclusions and the proponents had challenged the exclusions in the federal courts. A national conservative institute, the Beckett Fund, supported the challenge to the Massachusetts constitution. JALSA members Joel Eigerman and Mark Michelson prepared amicus briefs supporting the Attorney General’s action, defending the Massachusetts constitutional exclusion language, in the federal district court (Boyette v. Galvin) and in the US Court of Appeals (Wirzburger v. Galvin) on behalf of a broad number of religious groups and civil rights groups.

The US Court of Appeals rejected the challenge to the federal constitutionality of the parts of Massachusetts Constitutional amendment Article 48 that excludes religious matters, and any attempt to amend the anti-aid amendment, from the initiative petition process. The first Circuit rejected claims based on the free speech, free exercise, and equal protection clauses of the federal constitution.

Victory on Stem Cell Legislation

In a major legislative victory this year, JALSA fought back efforts to restrict science based on religious beliefs, and took the lead in the state on helping to draft and form the coalition to enact the Massachusetts stem cell research law.

JALSA applauded the House and Senate leadership after successful passage of JALSA’s priority legislative effort, a Massachusetts bill encouraging stem cell research in Massachusetts. This issue is central to JALSA because of our interest in access to health care, and because our organization believes strongly in the constitutional principal of the separation of church and state.

Congratulations to JALSA Advisory Committee member Cynthia Stone Creem for her outstanding work initiating the Massachusetts legislation. JALSA members were instrumental in the successful passage of this bill. JALSA board member David Freedman, a senior policy advisor to Senate President Robert Travaglini, provided a central role in the Senate; Rep.Ruth Balser provided important leadership in the House.

JALSA director Sheila Decter and legislative director Marilyn Segal provided important leadership to the effort.

JALSA helped to form broad support for the bill, including the establishment of MassCURE (Massachusetts Citizens United For Research Excellence) a broad-based coalition advocating for regenerative medicine including adult and embryonic stem cell research and somatic cell nuclear transfer.

Key legislative efforts were coordinated with Hadassah, whose national leadership had decided to emphasize stem cell research this year. JALSA staff helped to train Hadassah’s state leadership in legislative advocacy and Hadassah members provided an advocacy day and multiple forums at the State House throughout the process.

Efforts to Overturn Stem Cell Bill Thwarted

JALSA’s long term knowledge of the Massachusetts constitutional exclusions to the initiative process played a significant role in thwarting efforts to overturn the Massachusetts stem cell legislation.

JALSA is pleased that the Attorney General has not certified the proposed referendum to overturn the Massachusetts stem cell bill on the grounds that issues dealing with religion may not be the subject of the initiative or referendum process. A significant brief on this exclusion was provided on behalf of MassCURE, the coalition that helped to pass the legislation. Joel Eigerman provided a memo to the Attorney General responding to the proponents of the referendum.

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