A nationwide organization founded a year-and-a-half ago to oppose critical race theory has now taken aim at New Trier High School in Winnetka.
Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) said the high school's parents complained about two surveys students were required to complete. One survey asked if students wanted to join a "Combined Racial Affinity Group" or a "White Anti-Racist Affinity Group."
“It represents an incident of the school engaging in some type of activity that’s physically separating students based on their skin color,” FAIR's Staff Attorney Leigh Ann O'Neill said.
O’Neill explained that the survey may violate Title Six of the Civil Rights Act.
The other survey parents complained about asked students which pronouns they preferred.
"(This question) on its face sounds like somewhat of a mundane question, but there are students who don't believe that your gender can be separate from your biological sex," O'Neill said. "So it's problematic for those students to be required to answer that question because that would be ascribing to a belief that they do not hold."
She explained that could be a violation of the First Amendment. FAIR reached out to the school with the list of issues.
New Trier High School sent FAIR a letter back saying the school “strives to create a culture of dignity and belonging,” and that students’ club participation, as well as announcing their favored pronouns, are voluntary.
"It is not school policy to compel any student to share preferred pronouns; instead, teachers give students the opportunity to share if they would like to do so," Superintendent Paul Sally said in the letter.