Pa. lawsuit: Whites told they can't teach blacks

PHILADELPHIA – Four white Philadelphia teachers charge in federal race-bias lawsuits that a black principal suggested they were unfit to teach black students.

The teachers work at a predominantly black school in the city's East Falls neighborhood. Their lawsuits say a former principal had them read an article that said "white teachers do not have the ability to teach African-American students."

The Thomas Mifflin Elementary teachers say the principal and others undermined their work by reprimanding them, randomly changing their room assignments and letting black teachers ignore rules that white teachers had to follow.

The lawsuits were filed last week and first reported on Tuesday by Courthouse News Service.

A school district spokeswoman had no immediate comment.