Complaints about Clark County school environments led to emotional testimonies from parents and former educators who voiced concerns about pupil treatment, a lack of protection from youth violence particularly in “Black and brown communities” and too much or too little discipline.
“They used to say that they were going to open the street back up,” Ernesten Cooks said in an interview with Vegas PBS and The Nevada Independent. “We'd always say, ‘Well how can you open the street with all these old buildings?’ But I've lived long enough to see that they did open it.”
Sen. Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas), whose district also covers neighborhoods nearby, spoke about discrimination against Black children and families through urban planning policies. She said it is common practice for policymakers to “take our poverty, our racial characteristics, plug it into a grant, get dollars and those dollars do not find their way back to [predominantly Black] ZIP codes.”
Our first community listening session will be held this week and moderated by Indy reporter Naoka Foreman and Amber Renee Dixon, host of Nevada Week. Here’s what you need to know to join the wide-ranging conversation.