Today, a coalition of educators, school districts, and unions filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in response to an executive order aimed at dismantling the Department of Education. The legal action was initiated by Democracy Forward in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on behalf of several organizations including Easthampton School District, Somerville Public School Committee, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) – Massachusetts, AFT, AFSCME Council 93, American Association of University Professors, and Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
“Today, we defend all people who depend on the Department of Education to ensure public schools are safe, accessible and welcoming,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. She emphasized that instead of improving education opportunities for all, “Donald Trump is taking a wrecking ball to our nation’s best values.”
The lawsuit argues that mass firings planned by the Trump administration will harm students and schools by removing essential services provided by civil servants at the Department. Ilana Krepchin, Chair of the Somerville School Committee said that dismantling the department would cause real harm not only to students and schools but also to communities nationwide.
Jessica Tang, President of AFT Massachusetts highlighted that protecting access to public education is crucial for ensuring equal opportunities for all children. “Dismantling the federal government’s role…will cause the most harm to students with the greatest needs,” she said.
AFT President Randi Weingarten criticized the president’s actions as illegal and damaging to future generations. “The Department of Education…has one major purpose: to fill opportunity gaps to help every child in America succeed,” she noted.
Mark Bernard from AFSCME Council 93 described the executive order as both illegal and cruel. He stressed that many families rely on services under acts like IDEA for educational support.
Todd Wolfson from the American Association of University Professors warned that without the department’s role in higher education funding and civil rights enforcement, access for working-class Americans would decrease significantly.
SEIU President April Verrett declared that working people would not stand idly by while public education is destroyed. She pointed out that recent actions have already led to significant layoffs within the department.
The case raises constitutional issues regarding Congress’s consistent appropriation of funds for educational services over 46 years. For more information about this legal challenge, visit democracyforward.org.
Information from this article can be found here.
