✍️Save Public Education, Save Democracy
School privatization schemes would undermine opportunity.
School’s out for summer — but the threats to education funding aren’t taking a vacation. While classrooms may be quiet, political efforts to weaken support for public schools are heating up. That means we can’t afford to take a break from support for education.
Education isn’t just about reading, writing, and arithmetic. It’s also about power. It’s about ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, can fully participate in our democracy.
From the beginning, America’s leaders understood that an informed electorate was essential for self-governance.
If a nation expects to be ignorant and free … it expects what never was and never will be. – Thomas Jefferson, 1816
Today, that foundation is under attack — not just from budget cuts but also from coordinated efforts to dismantle the very systems that ensure equal opportunity for all. If we want to protect democracy, we must fight for education.
🚨Education: A Founding Principle, Even If Unwritten
While the U.S. Constitution doesn’t explicitly mention education, our country’s Founders knew that a republic could not survive without an educated public. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and others saw education as essential to liberty, justice, and informed decision-making.
Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own Governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives. – James Madison, 1822
That’s why, in the early years of our country, states took the lead in developing public education. Massachusetts passed the first compulsory schooling law in 1852, and other states followed. Their goal? To ensure every child had the knowledge to become a competent voter and active citizen.
🚨The Fight for Equal Education: A Federal Commitment
But for much of U.S. history, education was not equal. Access depended on race, wealth, and geography. The federal government couldn’t ignore this injustice.
The Civil Rights Movement forced the issue onto the national stage. In 1954, the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision struck down segregation in schools, declaring that “separate but equal” was a lie.
Today, education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments... the foundation of our democratic society. – Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
But desegregation didn’t happen overnight. States resisted, and without federal intervention, progress would have stalled.
In 1965, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act was a game-changer. For the first time, the federal government committed significant funding to help low-income schools through Title I. Later, laws like Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in education (1972), and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 1990) expanded educational rights.
The federal role in education wasn’t about control. It was about fairness. It ensured that opportunity wasn’t reserved for the privileged few.
🚨 The Threat We Face Today
Now, decades of progress are at risk. Some politicians want to slash funding for public schools. Their real goal? To privatize education, shift money to unregulated charter schools, and leave millions of children behind — especially children in poor and marginalized communities.
💡If those politicians succeed, what happens next?
Schools in wealthier areas will be fine.
Schools that rely on federal support — schools that serve low-income students, students with disabilities, and rural communities — will suffer.
The opportunity gap will widen, and democracy itself will weaken.
This year, proposed federal budget cuts target essential education programs, including Title I for low-income students and IDEA for students with disabilities. At the same time, the Trump administration and its allies are embracing elements of the far-right Project 2025 plan — including efforts to dismantle the Department of Education — threatening decades of federal protections for vulnerable students.
🚨This Is Our Fight
Defunding public education is not just an economic decision. It’s also a political strategy. The more uninformed and disengaged people are, the easier they are to manipulate.
Laws for the liberal education of youth, especially of the lower class of people, are so extremely wise and useful that no expense for this purpose would be thought extravagant. – John Adams, 1776
That’s why some people in power fear a strong public education system: it creates voters who think critically, question authority, and demand accountability.
If we care about the future of democracy, we must care about education. We must reject attempts to strip funding, resist efforts to privatize public schools, and support leaders who believe in equal access to learning.
This isn’t just about policy. It’s also about justice. It’s about whether the United States remains a country where every child — regardless of ZIP code, race, or income — has the chance to learn, grow, and lead.
🚨Take Action Now
✅ Speak out: Call and write your state and federal elected officials. Demand full funding for public education.
✅ Vote: Support candidates who make strong public schools a priority.
✅ Push back: Challenge misinformation (inaccuracies) and disinformation (lies) about federal education funding.
✅ Stay engaged: Follow education advocacy groups and share their work.
Education ... is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance wheel of the social machinery. – Horace Mann, 1848
Advocacy Resources
Education: Preschool to Public Schools to Higher Ed
A guide to advocacy groups fighting for equitable, well-funded education from early childhood through college.
Youth Civic Engagement & Student Activism
A ranked guide to organizations supporting youth activism, voting, and organizing
Early Learning & National Service
A ranked guide to advocacy groups protecting vital programs like Head Start and AmeriCorps
Contact Information: Washington's U.S. Senators and Representatives
Contact Information: Washington State's Elected Officials & Key Departments
🚨The future of democracy depends on an educated public. Let’s make sure we don’t let that future slip away.