A couple Fridays ago, late in the day, the Bernie Sanders campaign released its education plan, the “Thurgood Marshall Plan for Public Education.” Chris Stewart, father of three school aged children and CEO of Education Post—for whom I work—shared his thoughts and asked questions by way of a compelling Twitter thread last week. I have embedded the thread below:
Since you couched your plan deeply in a version of the Civil Rights tradition, and, by extension, black activist thought, I'll remind you that black people live in a world of ironies where sometimes up is down, and left is right. To be specific, policies meant to help often hurt.
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
You call your plan the "Thurgood Marshall plan for public education." I'll remind you that Marshall got a superior education in all-black schools, and he put his kids in the best private schools. Vouchers would be the only real educational Marshall plan. Ironic, right?
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
I mean, if education dollars are scarce, wouldn't that make the responsibility of education leaders doubly important? Shouldn't they reign in untenable pensions, stop signing employee contracts they can't afford, stop contracting with armies of consultants who do nothing?
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
I know you won't like the source, but you should consider the fact that traditional school districts are hotbeds of fraud and not the bastions of democratic oversight your union supporters wish us to believe.https://t.co/TTWCiOvvCI
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
You say the things that earn teachers' trust. They're underpaid, courageous fighters waging a good battle for better schools. You support them. And, they're 80% white college-educated women who vote and contribute to campaigns like yours. Please remember the poor have no union.
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
I do appreciate your proposal to "Establish a dedicated fund to create and expand teacher-training programs at HBCUs, minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and tribal colleges and universities to increase educator diversity." But, aren't those "segregated" schools? Ironic?
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
Also, you need to stop magnets from enrolling kids on the basis of race, test scores, ability, or talent. Either outlaw that, or stop attacking charters that must take everyone. Your supporters say charter counsel kids out, but magnets eliminate them before they even get in.
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
charter schools as an attack on black communities, but black parents favor charter schools more than any group. And they enroll in them at a higher rate. You can't strip black parents of their agency. They disagree with you, your public employee bankers, and yes, the NAACP….
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
That includes the Urban League, UNCF, even Al Sharpton's National Action Network of California. So, when you say you stand with the NAACP (as if that multiracial organization is the last work on black licensing) does that mean you don't stand with the rest of black people?
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
that the NAACP has some notable financial integrity issues. Yes, as a member, I'll point out that "our" NAACP has done great things. But, like my church, I'll need to tell the truth about some other things too. So, here it is…
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
…took money to oppose affordable drugs, did you stand with the California NAACP then? @SenSanders https://t.co/9q00Lk4wzB
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
when that same NAACP president took money from landlord groups to oppose rent control in California's unaffordable bastions of tech money?@SenSanders https://t.co/H2EP9wQp2F
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019
…and @SenSanders did you stand with the National NAACP when they fought net neutrality, siding with AT&T?https://t.co/QmT49d9qN3
— Citizen Stewart (@citizenstewart) May 24, 2019