Maryland’s Attorney General, along with attorneys general in 18 other states, filed a lawsuit Friday that challenges the Trump administration’s attempts to force schools to eliminate diversity programs or face the loss of federal funding for high-poverty schools.

The lawsuit filed in Massachusetts by Democratic attorneys general seeks to block the U.S. Department of Education from withholding money based on its April 3 directive ordering states to certify their compliance with civil rights laws, including the rejection of what the federal government calls “illegal DEI practices.” States also were told to gather signatures from local school systems certifying their compliance by April 24 to continue receiving Title I funds.

Maryland’s education leaders said yesterday that they would maintain diversity programs despite the Trump threats to take away funding. At stake is $314 million in Title I funding for Maryland schools.

All 24 school districts in Maryland said they would adhere to civil rights law, but they did not agree to the Trump administration’s interpretation of the law.

Friday’s lawsuit claims that the U.S. Department of Education is forcing school districts to “abandon lawful programs and policies that promote equal access to education” in classrooms across the country.

In a statement, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown called the federal education department’s interpretation “vague, contradictory, and unsupported.” For instance, the department has said that diversity, equity and inclusion programs violate the civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on race, color or national origin. A February memo from the U.S. education department said the programs disadvantage white and Asian students.

The lawsuit accuses the administration of imperiling more than $13.8 billion, including money used to serve students with disabilities.

“Plaintiffs are left with an impossible choice: either certify compliance with an ambiguous and unconstitutional federal directive — threatening to chill polices, programs and speech — or risk losing indispensable funds that serve their most vulnerable student populations,” the lawsuit states.

In addition to Brown, the plaintiffs are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.

The education department did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

Hours before Maryland sent its letters to the federal education department Thursday, two federal judges, acting in separate cases, blocked the Trump administration, at least temporarily, from acting on their threats.

“With these blatantly unlawful actions, the Trump administration is playing politics with children’s futures, threatening to defund schools just because they promote policies that ensure equal education for all students,” Brown said in a statement.

“Maryland will not stand by while President Trump tries to bully our State with vague, contradictory demands that would hurt our most vulnerable students and violate the law we’ve followed for decades.”

About the Education Hub

This reporting is part of The Banner’s Education Hub, community-funded journalism that provides parents with resources they need to make decisions about how their children learn. Read more.