Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) recently issued a scathing rebuke of a group supported by the U.S.’s largest teachers union that described school choice programs as “deeply rooted in segregation, racism and discrimination” ahead of National School Choice week, which begins on Jan. 22, 2024.
Scott denounced Truth in Education Funding, a network supported by the National Education Association (NEA). The group recently announced it would launch a fight against school choice programs beginning on Jan. 22, 2024.
Speaking to the Daily Caller, the South Carolina lawmaker blasted Truth in Education’s anti-school choice move as “offensive.”
“It’s absolutely offensive that the very organizations holding back poor and low-income kids are now deflecting blame on the schools that provide them the opportunity to live out their American dream,” Scott told the Daily Caller.
“In fact, it’s teachers’ unions and big labor bosses that shut countless minority students out of their schools. Now, they’re weaponizing race to lock them out of a brighter future and forward their anti-school choice agenda,” he added.
“The thing that’s racist is trapping poor students in failing schools, but this should come as no surprise considering big labor bosses have always prioritized themselves over our kids,” Scott continued.
Scott’s comments come after he joined Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) and Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) in introducing legislation declaring that parents have the right to raise their children as they see fit.
The bill is titled “The Families Rights and Responsibilities Act” and would bar the federal government from interfering with parents’ rights unless it passes a strict scrutiny test. The legislation allows parents to challenge the government in court if it violates their rights.
Tell Congress to Support Families' Rights!
Parents are the primary caretakers of their children and are solely responsible for their upbringing. Unfortunately, this fundamental right has been under attack in recent years. The Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act will ensure… pic.twitter.com/UZ62HyNfKS
— Arizona Women of Action (@azwomenofaction) January 19, 2024
For years, anti-school choice organizations have claimed that allowing parents to choose their children’s place of education is harmful because such an action reduces funding for public education.
In 2023, 17 states signed laws expanding school choice. Yet, such an increase did not lead public education funding to dwindle.
Instead, as school choice programs grew across the U.S., funding for public education also increased, with investment reaching a new record high. In 2023, per-pupil expenditures grew over 6% from 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
