OPINION: An attack on education is an attack on democracy | Opinion

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday, March 20 that plans to dismantle the U.S. Division of Schooling and put management again within the arms of the states. This comes after the U.S. Division of Schooling announced that greater than 50 universities had been being investigated for alleged non-compliance with government orders from the Trump Administration to finish range, fairness and inclusion applications in greater schooling.

Within the press launch, the division outlines the colleges beneath investigation and states that universities should “end the use of racial preferences and stereotypes in education programs and activities.” Although the College of Georgia shouldn’t be being investigated, different flagship establishments just like the College of Kentucky and the College of Delaware, are.

It’s unclear what college applications and actions the assertion is referring to. In late February, the Division of Schooling launched an FAQ document to make clear what the anti-DEI insurance policies entailed, stating that utilizing terminology associated to DEI in academic applications didn’t essentially violate Title VI. Nevertheless, colleges should think about whether or not applications discourage college students of a specific race from attending both by actively excluding them or by making a “hostile atmosphere primarily based on race.”

The doc outlines that the definition of “a racially hostile atmosphere” relies on the situation. It states that applications sponsoring discussions of range that accuse college students of being oppressors or “assign them intrinsic guilt primarily based on the actions of their presumed ancestors” could not work in an elementary faculty setting, however may very well be permissible in a college classroom.

Whereas that does add some clarification, the vagueness of the language raises issues about what conversations represent assigning guilt to or accusing college students of being oppressors. Does this confer with all conversations surrounding range or simply specific feedback assigning blame? Who determines what’s age applicable? What’s the punishment for academics accused of this? It’s nonetheless unclear, even as these policies facilitate widespread changes to the education system.

Since his inauguration in mid-January, Trump has campaigned heavily against DEI programs within the federal authorities. However, the anti-DEI sentiment is nothing new, with many states, including Georgia, opting to restrict what content can and cannot be taught in K-12 classrooms.

Current content material censorship inside Ok-12 colleges, new investigations into greater education schemes and cuts to federal research funding paint a troubling image for the way forward for schooling and democracy.

I don’t assume these insurance policies are actually meant to ensure “equity” in our schooling system. Earlier than applications had been established to help marginalized and underserved communities, America’s schooling system was removed from meritocratic.

There are already advantages that wealthy students are given primarily based not on their very own benefit, however on sources they’ve entry to. They live in the best school districts. They can afford to take unpaid internships and engage in volunteer work. They have access to the best tutors. If the present administration cared about discrimination in greater schooling, why not go after this construction?

For my part, it is as a result of they haven’t any actual curiosity in tackling racial discrimination or inequality in greater schooling. It’s a method of exerting management over the very establishment that sustains our democracy: schooling. By systematically silencing their critics, the Trump administration creeps dangerously nearer to authoritarianism.

Increased schooling fosters vital considering, which allows residents to carry governments and people in energy accountable for his or her actions. School ought to be a spot the place you encounter new individuals, concepts and views, not a spot the place these issues are actively discouraged or made troublesome to entry.