It’s been a week since domestic terrorism took the lives of 10 Black people and injured three others shopping for groceries in Buffalo, New York—a hate-filled crime all too familiar to Americans. Three of the victims were NYSUT/NEA members.
The gunman revealed his motivation in a 180-page manifesto published on the internet: the racist “great replacement theory” promulgated by some hard-right politicians and talking heads. This hateful ideology has led to attacks elsewhere, including Charlottesville amid chants of “Jews will not replace us.” Well-armed white men have murdered Black people in their churches, Latino immigrants out shopping, and Jewish congregants in synagogues.
Meanwhile, state legislatures continue their efforts to prevent honest education and deny our children the freedom to learn and be themselves.
Last week, NEA member Willie Carver, 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, testified before a House subcommittee about the disastrous impact of restricting discussion of LGBTQ+ issues and punishing teachers who discuss them.
“Political attacks are exacerbating teacher shortages, harming our democracy and, above all, hurting our children,” he said. “We need you to pass the Equality Act, to make discrimination against LGBTQ people illegal. We need you to pass the Safe Schools Improvement Act, to protect all students from harassment.”
We also need Congress to pass common-sense measures, supported by most Americans, to help prevent future gun violence.
In solidarity,
Marc Egan
Government Relations Director
National Education Association
The targeting and massacre of 10 Black people in a Buffalo supermarket underscores the urgent need for federal action to prevent hate-fueled domestic terrorism.
Support the Social Security Fairness Act and the Social Security 2100 Act to repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) that deprive educators of benefits they have earned.
CHEER: Members of the House Education and Labor Committee voted to advance the Rebuild America’s Schools Act (H.R. 604), Enhancing Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Through Campus Planning Act (H.R. 5407), Campus Prevention and Recovery Services for Students Act (H.R. 6493), and Mental Health Matters Act (H.R. 7780).
JEER: Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) offered an amendment to strike out all mentions of LGBTQ+ students from a student mental health bill during a markup in the House Education and Labor Committee.
JEER: Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Tim Scott (R-SC), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the Student Loan Accountability Act to prevent canceling or forgiving any balances of covered loans.