The Office for Civil Rights (OCR), a branch of the Department of Education charged with investigating claims of discrimination in schools and other programs the department funds, received a record-high 19,201 complaints in 2023. This was up 2% from 2022.
The OCR enforces a range of civil rights laws, including Titles II, VI, and IX. Anyone can file a discrimination complaint, whether they were the victim themselves or are filing on behalf of someone else.
What is a civil rights violation?
A variety of civil rights laws, and in some cases, the US Constitution, protect Americans against discrimination based on protected categories: race, disability, religion, immigration or citizenship status, language and national origin, age, genetic identification, servicemember status, and familial status (which includes marital, parental, and pregnancy status).
They protect people in settings including housing, healthcare, the workplace, public spaces, businesses, polling places — and education.
Which civil rights laws does the Department of Education’s OCR enforce?
The OCR responds to alleged violations of:
- Title VI, barring discrimination based on race, color, or national origin
- Title IX, barring discrimination based on sex
- Section 504 and Title II, barring discrimination based on disability
- Age Discrimination Act of 1975, barring discrimination based on age (does not include employment)
- Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act prohibiting access discrimination by school facilities
In fiscal year 2023, 96% of complaints fell under three of these: Sex-based discrimination under Title IX (42.5%), disability-based discrimination under Section 504 and Title II (35.1%), and race, color, and national origin-based discrimination under Title VI (18.4%). The remaining four percent of complaints were related to age or equal access discrimination.
