A black student in California is three times more likely to be suspended than a white student

In the 2009-10 school year, about 18% of black students were suspended, compared with 7% of Latinos, 6% of whites and 3% of Asians. The overall suspension rate was 5.2%. Among the state’s larger school systems, Stockton Unified stood out for suspending 38% of black male students, according to the federal data on which the study was based. But other students were also suspended: 19% of Latino males, 23% of white males and 13% of Asian males. Manteca Unified, south of Stockton, suspended 60% of black students, 30% of Latinos, 33% of whites and 28% of Asians. Overall, one in three students went home for misbehavior. In San Bernardino City Unified, schools suspended 59% of black males with a disability and a third of Latinos. The racial discrepancy also existed at Los Angeles Unified, where 23% of black males were suspended, compared with 7% of Latino males and 6% of white males.