Election years tend to bring out the worst in politicians vying to hold on to power and win elections. Recently, in Alabama, that materialized through a set of education bills that recall the state’s segregationist past and reject the promise of a free and inclusive public school system that is the bedrock of our democracy.
This election season, Governor Kay Ivey and her allies are hoping to leverage widespread disinformation about the so-called “Great Replacement,” critical race theory and public schools to garner political support, even at the expense of Alabama children.
With two months left in the state legislative session, Ivey has already signed a set of bills that undercut the vitality of public schools and institutions and marginalize people of color and LGBTQ+ people by attempting to ban diversity, equity and inclusion programs, or DEI, (SB 129) and divert millions of public funds to unaccountable private schools, including those that are known to segregate our children and foster discrimination (HB 129). For those familiar with Ivey’s Strong Start, Strong Finish initiative, this may seem like a departure from her past support of public education.
During her 2018 State of the State address, Ivey said the state’s “central focus must be on our students, not personal agendas or political maneuvering.” We could not agree more. In fact, our recent poll in neighboring Florida showed that more than 90% of parents and adults believe that professional educators should guide school curricula free from political influence.
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Yet, states like Florida and Alabama continue to pass legislation that censors discussion about race, gender and sexual orientation in schools and classrooms. In addition, Alabama’s new school voucher program will take needed resources from these public schools and apply them to education alternatives, such as private schools, through so-called education savings accounts that allow up to $7,000 per student each year – still below the average cost to attend a private school in the state, meaning this siphoning of public resources is primarily intended to benefit wealthier families. . Nearly a dozen Alabama counties are without private education options, and the impact of student departures across the state could mean fewer resources for students who remain in public schools.
Private schools receiving public funds to educate students are not subject to the same rules and regulations as traditional public schools. They are not even required to maintain certain standards. In Alabama, many private schools are religious and can exclude students based on religion, including denying enrollment to LGBTQ+ students and or students with LGBTQ+ parents.
On May 17, 2024, we will commemorate the 70th anniversary of the pivotal U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education. The case held that state-sanctioned segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, forcing states that were not in compliance to integrate their schools. White people in the South, who were determined to maintain the status quo, responded by establishing private segregation academies so that their children would not have to go to school with Black children. During his inaugural speech in 1963, then-governor George Wallace promised the people who elected him, “segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.”
This is the history Ivey and other state elected officials want to suppress in our schools and other public spaces. But the anniversary of Brown and the current social and political climate is a sobering reminder of Coretta Scott King’s timeless message: “Struggle is a never-ending process. Freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation. That is what we have not taught young people, or older ones for that matter.”
The effects of censorship and anti-DEI bills may not be fully realized until 70 years from now. But our children are counting on us to do what must be done now to secure freedom and justice for all, starting with our vigorous participation in the election process. Even if your preferred candidate is not on the ballot this election cycle, your vote can be the difference in what our state and nation look like 70 years from now. Every election matters. Do not allow the haters to be the only ones showing up at the polls.
Mike Tafelski is a senior supervising attorney for the Southern Poverty Law Center, overseeing the Democracy: Education and Youth legal practice group in Alabama and Georgia.
