Connecticut Superior Court judge Harry Hammer recently ruled that the state cannot be held responsible for the severely segregated Hartford public schools, since it had not purposely created the unequal system.

It didn't matter to the good judge that in Hartford 94 percent of the 24,000 students are Black or Latino, or that the city's students ranked last on tests designed and required by the state Department of Education.

It didn't matter to the judge that many of the schools are falling apart, with toilets that don't work, outdated textbooks, and understocked libraries. Meanwhile, in affluent West Hartford, the schools are modern facilities with the latest in educational technology. A New York Times editorial noted that the suburban "schools sparkle, the kids ace their tests and go on to Ivy League colleges."

The state of Connecticut is guilty of willfully maintaining a segregated and unequal school system. The facts have been before its lawmakers for at least 30 years.

In 1965, the United States Civil Rights Commission reported widespread segregation in the Connecticut public school system and urged the state to take action. This was ignored.

Rather than do anything meaningful to correct the inequalities in Hartford and other urban school centers, the government promoted fake "voluntary" programs to avoid court- ordered desegregation.

The Hartford public school system is a travesty that should be corrected, whether or not Black and Hispanic students can prove the state had a hand in setting up the rigid segregation, which assures unequal education. The protests being organized by high school students and other leaders of the Black and Latino communities to demand equal education deserve the full backing of all working people.  
 
 
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