State House Republican Leader Themis Klarides (R-Derby) testified before the Connecticut legislature March 8 in support of a bill that would ban the collection of detailed ethnic data not currently assembled on state students.
At her side was Woodbridge resident and mother Lin Yang, who called the potential practice dangerous and divisive.
Klarides told the Education Committee that Connecticut should take a preemptive strike against any formal efforts to compile data on which specific countries children come from.
“You see here today a powerful, emotional message that is being sent by hundreds of people who have taken the time to come here and have their voices heard,’’ Klarides said.
Nearly 1,000 Asian Americans traveled to the Capitol to take part in a public hearing and tell lawmakers their concerns about the possibility that more granular data not currently required by the federal government could be collected. Many said that they believed such a practice would send the wrong message to future generations of students.
House Republican Leader Themis Klarides, right, testified at the state legislature in support of a bill that would limit the collection of ethnic data on state students. Contributed photo.