By Matthew Reichbach
Public schools in New Mexico, including universities, are subject to the state’s anti-discrimination law according to a unanimous ruling by the state Supreme Court issued Thursday.
The ruling came in regards to a lawsuit from McKenzie Johnson, an Albuquerque Native American high school student whose teacher allegedly used a racial slur toward Johnson in 2018. The same teacher allegedly cut off some of the braided hair of another Native American student.
Johnson’s suit against Albuquerque Public Schools and the teacher was dismissed by a state district court, but the state Court of Appeals reversed the decision and allowed the lawsuit to move forward. That ruling was appealed to the state Supreme Court, which affirmed the Court of Appeals decision.
Johnson, in a statement, said she was “validated and relieved” by the ruling. “It reaffirms the importance of respecting diversity and upholding the rights of Indigenous students like myself. No student should endure discrimination or disrespect in the classroom,” Johnson said. “I hope it serves as a wake-up call for educators to prioritize cultural sensitivity and create inclusive environments where every student feels valued and respected.”
An Albuquerque Public Schools spokesman said in a statement that the ruling may have unintended consequences down the road..
“What happened at Cibola was unacceptable. That said, we’re disappointed in the ruling because we believe it improperly expands existing law, bypasses the Legislature and overturns the court’s own legal precedent,” APS spokesman Martín Salazar said on behalf of the district. “We fear it will have a negative and chilling impact on public school teachers across the state. Nevertheless, the court has made its ruling, and we accept it.”
Chief Justice David K. Thomson wrote the high court’s opinion.
“The holding of this opinion is firmly grounded in the plain language of the NMHRA. However, the statute’s history and background demonstrate that the Legislature intended for public schools to be public accommodations and therefore in some ways accountable under the NMHRA,” Thomson wrote.
The ruling cited the “unfortunate history of race-based discrimination” within public schools.
“New Mexico schools have been used to further efforts of assimilation and cultural erasure among Native American and Hispanic children,” Thomson wrote. “The historical experience of Native American children has been described in academia as one of assimilation through education ‘that intentionally sought to destroy their cultural ways of life.’”
The ruling hinged on whether or not a public school is a “public accommodation” as outlined by the state Human Rights Act. The court ruled that they do, indeed, meet that statutory definition.
The court also noted that “Providing no state remedy to students who are the target of discrimination that does not result in the TCA’s requisite damages would be inconsistent with the purpose of the NMHRA to eliminate such discrimination.”
The state Supreme Court went beyond just ruling that public K-12 schools can be sued for discriminatory conduct under the state’s expansive Human Rights Act, and ruled that public universities also could face lawsuits under the law.
This overturned a previous state Supreme Court decision, the 1981 Human Rights Commission of New Mexico v. Board of Regents of University of New Mexico College of Nursing, that exempted public universities. That ruling said that a public university is not a public accommodation, which Thomson’s opinion was an error.
In 2023, the state Legislature passed a law expanding the Human Rights Act to apply to “any governmental entity.” But the court’s ruling in this case refers to Johnson’s 2018 lawsuit, which predated that law.
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico interim Executive Director Leon Howard lauded the court’s decision, saying it “sets an important precedent for protecting the rights of students in our public school system and underscores the fundamental principle that all students, regardless of background, deserve to learn in an environment free from discrimination and harassment.”