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A message from League of United Latin American Citizens



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Photo Credit: Maldef

March 22, 2023
Contact: David Cruz - (818) 689-9991 Mobile
[email protected]



LULAC OPPOSES TEXAS PUBLIC SCHOOL VOUCHERS SOUGHT ON 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF EDGEWOOD
CASE
=================================================================================


Nation's Oldest and Largest Latino Civil Rights Organization Calls Efforts To Use
Public Education Funding for Private Schools An Unacceptable Solution

Washington, DC - The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) says it
opposes demands by non-Latino groups to approve the use of public education
funding for vouchers for private schools. Proponents say they want education
vouchers to remove their children from public schools with declining grades,
deteriorating classroom discipline, and academic curricula with which they
disagree. Opponents say so-called school choice drains critical funding from
public education and will leave students, including those with disabilities in
lower-income areas, with fewer teachers and resources. Since there is no
independent voucher funding stream, this will rob public schools of much-needed
revenue.

"Texas LULAC strongly supports education through public schools which have
historically served our communities and the largest number of children in our
state," says Rodolfo Rosales Jr., Texas LULAC State Director. "We oppose school
vouchers because they will perpetuate the economic imbalance the Edgewood case
half a century ago so clearly showed. Children stuck in public schools in
low-income areas often get a lesser education, while kids with greater mobility
will attend more affluent schools with far more resources and teachers. The
difference now is that public taxpayer dollars will pay for the vouchers for
private schools, and that's wrong," says Rosales.

Photo Credit: University of Virginia

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the
landmark San Antonio School District v. Edgewood case. LULAC supported a group of
Latino parents led by Demetrio and Belen Rodriguez, who filed a lawsuit
challenging the unequal funding for public schools in Texas. The plaintiffs
showed that Edgewood school district, located on San Antonio's predominantly
Mexican American westside, paid some of the highest property taxes. Yet, children
in the community received $37 per school year compared to $413 allocated to
students attending the Alamo Heights school district, located in a more affluent,
predominantly white area.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that equal education is not guaranteed under the
U.S. Constitution. Justice Lewis F. Powell wrote that states have the right to
each address public education problems. He added, "there will be more than one
constitutionally permissible method of solving them, and that, within the limits
of rationality, the legislature's efforts to tackle the problems should be
entitled to respect."

Dr. Angela Valenzuela, Professor, University of Texas, Austin, and LULAC National
Higher Education Taskforce Co-Chair, says parents need to know the facts about
school vouchers. "Years of research on vouchers indicate that private schools
that make use of vouchers generally do not have better educational outcomes than
if a student had stayed in their own public school. And sometimes, the outcomes
are worse. Plus, vouchers increase segregation by socioeconomic class status,
race, and religion," says Valenzuela.

Photo Credit: Library of Congress

# # #

About LULAC
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and
oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans
and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000
councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and
advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of
today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org [ [link removed] ] .















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