Friend,

Americans are still recovering from the ripple effects of the pandemic, particularly our most vulnerable populations. Students still have a vast array of social, emotional and academic needs as they head back to school, and workers are re-entering a changing workplace. On top of that, the need for accessible healthcare is only growing.

Now is not the time for Congress to make massive cuts to the programs we depend on, but that’s exactly what many Republicans are trying to do. It’s up to us to spread the word to make sure our communities know what’s at stake.  

Click here to write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper; you can potentially reach thousands of people with this simple action that takes just minutes of your time.

Here’s what you need to know about the House Republicans’ appropriations bill. It would:

•  Cut $63.8 billion from public K-12 education—a 28 percent decrease from 2023 funding and the lowest possible funding for the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies bill since 2008.
• Cut Title I funding by 80 percent, which could force a nationwide reduction of 220,000 teachers from classrooms serving low-income students. This would make our already unsustainable nationwide shortage of educators even worse.
• Eliminate programs for English language learners (Title III), supports for educators (Title II-A), social and emotional learning grants, Promise Neighborhoods and Magnet Schools.
• Cut funding for community schools—schools that serve not just students but their families.  
• Decimate funding for job training, cancer research, health initiatives for mental health, addressing the opioid crisis, eliminating HIV/AIDS, and more.  
• Continue the Republicans’ attacks on women’s health by cutting programs to support maternal health, eliminating programs that provide contraception and health services, and adding amendments to push their draconian agenda to ban abortion and make reproductive healthcare harder to access.

It’s up to us to spread the word and show lawmakers that the public refuses to allow our educational institutions to be attacked by political extremists.

At the AFT, we’re working to ensure that every child has what they need to thrive. Our Real Solutions for Kids and Communities campaign is all about focusing on students’ loneliness, learning loss and literacy. But our communities must understand who is trying to cut vital education and community programs—because it takes resources to support educators and school staff.

We need your help to do that. Please write a letter to the editor and spread the word.

In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President