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– Christopher Rufo, a leading opponent of critical race theory and LGTBQ+ conversations in schools
Although often unspoken, there is a serious connection between the culture wars and efforts to privatize public education that results in crucial losses in public school funding. The war on public schools is strategic – by attempting to undermine teachers, librarians, and school boards, public education opponents seek to push families and lawmakers to privatization as the alternative. Consequently, we’ve seen a huge uptick in what supporters call “universal school choice” this year, meaning that more states are allowing all their students, regardless of income status, to claim financial support to attend a non-public school, stripping money from public education.
Many states expanding private school favoritism do so by providing Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), which strip dollars from public education and divert them to private education or homeschooling expenses. Last month, North Carolina became the sixth state this year to pass legislation to destabilize public education over the next three years. Eight other states also established or expanded similar programs this year.
Organizations such as EdChoice, whose mission is to advance “school choice for all children” nationwide, have declared 2023 the “year of universal school choice.” And they have so far enjoyed considerable success. EdChoice consistently criticizes public education and recently published a study saying “seventy percent of Americans believe K-12 education is heading in the wrong direction.” By trying to decrease confidence in the effectiveness of and support for public schools, EdChoice aims to increase support for non-public school options.
We must fight these attempts to undermine public education so that all students have access to high-quality public schools. Research shows that these efforts to destabilize public education have the greatest impact on students of color. ESAs and other anti-education vehicles offer “a separate, unhelpful alternative to the vast majority of students (disproportionately kids of color who live in poverty),” wrote teacher and columnist Xian Franzinger Barrett. We can’t allow a small number of students to siphon equal access from the rest.
Teachers Fight Back (and win!)
Texas: Earlier this month, hundreds of teachers, school administrators, and parents protested legislation that would expand school vouchers and strip funding from public education. There has even been talk of using a raise as a bargaining chip to pass the increased school privatization measures. Texas teachers make $7,652 less than the national average, according to the National Education Association, and were the only state employees not to receive a raise in this year’s legislative session. Many teachers at the protest argued that they would rather forego a raise than support the legislation that takes money from public schools. The opinion of teachers is clear – school vouchers will hurt their jobs, their students, and their communities. Now all they need is for legislators to listen.
Pennsylvania: In Bucks County, which reportedly has the highest Moms for Liberty membership in the state, book bans and discrimination against LGBTQ+ students in schools have increased. The Central Bucks school board, which has extremist members, reportedly hired Independence Law Center, a conservative Christian law firm with ties to Moms for Liberty. In response to the extremist presence on their school boards, a parent and retired teacher from the district created a non-profit called Advocates for Inclusive Education. “Our job in our community is to educate people on the policies that are impacting our kids’ education and advocate for best practices in an inclusive education,” said one of the parents involved in creating the nonprofit.
Iowa: Since the state passed one of the broadest school voucher bills in the country, Iowa teachers have been fighting to preserve public education funds. The legislation has raised several concerns, specifically for rural schools, about the ability to continue providing their students high-quality educational opportunities. Additionally, private schools can have minimal standards of accountability and can deny civil rights protections. Many participating schools have policies that allow discrimination against LGBTQ+ students and students with disabilities. In speaking against vouchers, teacher Karen Lauritzen said, “We also had to remind them that our state is 51st in education funding, you can’t starve education here anymore.”
Events & Resources for Action
The EveryLibrary Institute is a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring public and political support for libraries. The organization offers a publicly available webinar series that provides individuals with the skills and resources to fight book bans.
The Kids Right to Read Project is part of the National Coalition Against Censorship’s (NCAC) Youth Free Expression Program. The project has helped fight book bans throughout the country and provides resources on how to prevent book bans, defend LGBTQ+ stories, and respond to book challenges.