Education and the Election

    The November 2nd election is about more than picking a president.  It’s about selecting someone who will put into public policy ideas and aspirations that will help all citizens improve their lives.  That is particularly important to African Americans, many of whom are currently saddled with disproportionately low poor educational and economic opportunities, health care access, and high incarceration rates.  This is also a time of opportunity for African Americans, who have historically been very pragmatic voters and have supported candidates that support public policy favorable to their interests, to have a larger than usual hand in selecting the next president.  From overwhelming support for Republicans in the Reconstruction era to equally strong support for the Democrats now, African Americans have been loyal to the political party that has been loyal to them.

    African Americans are uniquely positioned to affect the 2004 presidential election due to their concentration in a number of important states.  While 12 percent of the national population, African Americans comprise at least 15 percent of the population in 16 states and the District of Columbia.  Seven of the states are in the top 10 nationally in population.  Given the close 2000 election, it is quite possible that a stronger than usual African American turnout can make the difference.  Consider this: if Al Gore won just one more state in 2000, he would be president today.  He lost Arkansas by 50,000 votes; West Virginia by 41,000.

    Both parties took note of the high turnout of African American women in 2000, which was partly attributable to the Million Woman March (African American men and women were among the few groups to see an increase in turnout from 1996 to 2000) and its impact on Black consciousness.  Given their propensity to vote Democratic, Senator John Kerry wins if African Americans show up at the polls in large numbers; if not, President George W. Bush gets another term in office.  For those looking for change, there is a great deal at stake in the election.  The U.S. Supreme Court has not had a vacancy in 10 years and the next president is expected to appoint two or three judges.  A number of important issues–including affirmative action and racial profiling among others–could all reach the Court with substantial implications.

    Education is one of today’s most important issues.  How the next president approaches education can have long term implications on communities around the nation.  Education has proven to be the best way to obtain a brighter future.  Government statistics show that people with a bachelor's degree earn over 60 percent more on average than those with only a high school diploma.  Over a lifetime, the gap in earning potential between a high school diploma and a B.A. (or higher) is more than $1,000,000.

    African Americans are overwhelmingly educated in public schools systems.  However, crumbling infrastructures, underpaid teachers, sporadic violence, and insufficient resources plague many public school systems around the nation.  As a consequence, many young people graduate without many of the skills necessary to be successful in college or the workplace.

    If a student is able to overcome the numerous problems that characterize secondary education and move on to college, astronomically high costs await.  The average cost of one year at a four-year private college or university is over $24,000; over $10,400 at a four-year public institution.  Even with scholarships and grants, students are graduating American colleges and universities with substantial debt.

    The centerpiece of President Bush’s education plan is “No Child Left Behind” (NCLB).  It emphasizes standardized testing for students and calls for greater accountability for teachers to ensure that students succeed.  The plan has proven to be controversial, though, and critics argue that the plan is too inflexible and does not adequately reflect learning differences.  Critics have also pointed out that Bush has not followed through on his plan to provide the necessary funding to ensure the NCLB can succeed.  Bush also supports school choice, whereby students can transfer from underperforming neighborhood schools to more productive ones, and government supported vouchers to allow students to attend private and parochial schools.  This has clear church-state implications and Bush signed into law a pilot program to provide vouchers to poor students in Washington, D.C.

    Senator Kerry’s education plan includes a proposal for an Education Trust Fund that will require an increase in annual federal investments in education from its current level of $23.8 billion to about $35 billion by 2008 to meet the full commitment of NCLB.  Kerry opposes Bush’s voucher proposal.  Kerry also proposes a variety of tax credits and savings plans to help make college more affordable and supports the continuation of Title IX without changes.

    African Americans have a great deal at stake in the upcoming election.  Consequently, concerned citizens have to do all that we can to ensure that whomever is elected president will have the clearest understanding possible about what direction the nation should go.  Showing up at the ballot box in large numbers helps to ensure that elected officials will create legislation that better reflects African American aspirations and priorities.  Bush and Kerry can count votes and, despite our understandable cynicism, will respond to a large African American turnout.  Failing to turnout in large numbers would likely result in increasingly difficult economic times, as national budgets tighten, interest rates rise, and military actions around the world rise. 

© Michael K. Fauntroy
October 20, 2004