Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) filed an amicus brief in Board of Education of the City School District of the City of New York v. U.S. Department of Education urging the court to reject the Trump Administration’s unlawful termination of federal Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) funding and to reaffirm the authority of federal district courts to review claims brought under the Administrative Procedure Act.
The MSAP program was established in the wake of Brown v. Board of Education to advance school integration and expand access to high-quality education for historically marginalized students. Today, New York City’s magnet schools overwhelmingly serve Black and Hispanic students and provide a critical pathway for students of all backgrounds to learn, grow, and thrive.
The Trump Administration’s decision to terminate MSAP funding explicitly targets New York City’s efforts to support transgender students. This decision inflicts broad and disproportionate harm. The loss of MSAP funding directly impacts thousands of Black and Hispanic students, low-income students, and other students of color across 19 magnet schools. Moreover, the Trump Administration’s attack on New York City’s guidelines to support transgender students do not align with the express procedures Congress outlined in Title IX and Congress’ recognition that the MSAP program is in the best interest of the country.
“This action represents a direct attack on programs created to fulfill the promise of Brown,” said Avatara Smith Carrington, Assistant Counsel at LDF. “By unlawfully cutting off MSAP funding, the Administration is undermining needed efforts to fulfill Brown’s promise of equal educational opportunity for Black and brown students who have long been denied the opportunity.”
The brief also rebukes the Administration’s attempt to strip federal district courts of their authority to vacate unlawful agency actions. For decades, courts have played a critical role in enforcing federal civil rights laws and providing immediate relief when government agencies act beyond their legal authority.
“This case is part of a broader effort by the Trump Administration to evade accountability for violations of the law,” said Alon Goldfinger, LDF Fellow. “Federal courts have both the power and the responsibility to stop unlawful agency actions .”
In the brief, LDF urges the Court to protect students, uphold the rule of law, and ensure that federal civil rights protections remain meaningful and enforceable.
Read the amicus brief.
###
Founded in 1940, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) is the nation’s first civil rights law organization. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Please note that LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957 — although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights.
