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Many school districts strive to achieve high mathematics achievement and equitable outcomes. This study examines the work of Gateside district, an urban district that had made great progress in the enactment of equity minded policies such as de-tracking and the availability of high-level mathematics to all students. A detailed, case study of teaching and learning in the high school mathematics classrooms showed that the equity focused work of the teachers and district leaders was compromised by the narrow mathematics standards that informed the tasks used in classrooms. The prevalence of narrow tasks led students to develop binary perceptions of each other, revealing a fundamental tension between narrow content standards and equitable outcomes.