DETROIT - Critics of the Detroit Public Schools' decision to restart classes during the COVID-19 pandemic were trying to stop summer classes from taking place with a lawsuit but courts adjourned Friday with no decision made.
The lawsuit, filed by activist groups like By Any Means Necessary (BAMN), Equal Opportunity Now (EON), as well as bus drivers, parents, and teachers have pressed hard on the Detroit School district to cease operations on the grounds it could infect and kill students and contribute to a wider spread of the coronavirus throughout the region.
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Group files suit to stop Detroit summer school
All week, protesters have been demanding summer classes being held during the COVID-19 pandemic at Detroit schools end. Now they're planning a lawsuit to stop them.
Attorneys from BAMN and Governor Gretchen Whitmer's office made their arguments in court before BAMN's attorney requested times to make changes and refile against the school district in a different court.
Protests against the district started last week before ramping up after schools reopened on Monday. Demonstrations took place in front of multiple school bus terminals where protesters blocked the transport vehicles from exiting the lots on their way to pick up students. The district's superintendent said the disruptions likely led to some students not making it school during the first four days of class.
As Michigan's pandemic summer has continued, attention has turned toward school reopenings. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is among the defendants listed on the lawsuit, says curbing the pandemic ahead of the fall start of school justifies statewide closures of some business operations and face mask mandates.
However, districts like those in Detroit have also begun the slow process of reopening some schools. Superintendent Dr. Nikolai Vitti says the aim was to help students catch up on lessons and recover class credits they missed out on due to an early end to the school year and the disruption that comes with online learning.
Shortly after some schools reopened, activists like teacher Benjamin Royal said they planned on filing a lawsuit to close the schools until better protocols were in place or a vaccine had been created.
"This is an act of brutality against the people of Detroit, against the students and communities," Royal said after Detroit police arrested 11 protesters during a Thursday protest, "we are out here to prevent the spread of a deadly disease in our schools, to prevent that from spreading from the schools back into the community and that's why we're trying to shut the schools down, that's why we're trying to shut down the buses."
Currently, Michigan's COVID-19 cases have rebounded from a low in June, climbing up to almost 900 cases in a day on Wednesday.