Reclaiming Our Power to Promote Honest and Inclusive Education

For America to work for all of us, it must respect us all. Our ancestors knew this when they fought to integrate schools, ensure our books and curriculum reflect and respect all our students, and provide schools that are safe and welcoming places to learn. Today, however, that legacy is under attack, as right-wing politicians and their billionaire backers try to seize more power by silencing, firing, and detaining Americans based on what we look like, where we come from, or who we love. 

Now it’s our turn to fight the forces seeking to divide us. By joining together—Black, White, and brown, Native and newcomer, people of all genders—the many can ensure our schools are fully funded and places of liberty and justice for all—no exceptions.

Promoting Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion 

What’s at Stake?

The Trump administration is attempting to restrict academic freedom and educational opportunity by silencing educators’ efforts to reach all students no matter their zip code, race or gender. Educational institutions are being investigated and some are losing federal funding; schools are being pressured to roll back programs that increase opportunities and promote equality; and students and educators are discouraged from speaking out, losing grants and visas, and are even being abducted, all to chill their support for diversity, equity, and inclusion or for expressing their opposition to unjust practices around the world. 

History has taught us that by joining together across races and backgrounds, abilities and genders, Americans defeated the powerful few who tried to exclude diverse voices from education, politics, workplaces, and public life. Like them, we will defend educators’ and students’ right to academic freedom.

From protecting against funding threats to nullifying the “Dear Colleague Letter,” we will continue to fight to move our country forward and make this a place of liberty and justice for all – no exceptions. 

Supporting Our LGBTQ+ Communities  

What's at Stake?

All of us—no matter our sex, race, gender identity or who we love—deserve to shine bright as our true authentic selves. But certain politicians and their billionaire backers bully transgender, intersex, and non-binary people so they can hold onto power – banning books, denying medical care, and passing laws controlling who we can be and love. By trying to force schools to exclude certain students and police gender identity, they aim to divide us while endangering our communities and the lives of our students, and to undermine, attack, and dismantle public education and student inclusivity.

Together, we can light the way to a better future, where all students feel safe and welcome, and people of all races, genders, and backgrounds are free to be themselves and thrive.  

Racial Disparities in School Discipline 

What’s at Stake?

On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order attacking efforts by schools to address racial disparities in student discipline. This executive order uses a newly invented concept it calls "discriminatory equity ideology" to threaten to roll back progress made toward dismantling exclusionary discipline practices and creating more equitable learning environments. It deliberately ignores clear evidence of racial disparities and risks further harm to students of color and students with disabilities.

Overly harsh disciplinary policies can negatively affect all students but have had a particularly harmful impact on Native, Asian, Black, Latin(o/a/x), Middle Eastern and North African, Pacific Islander, and Multiracial students—including those who identify as LGBTQ+, have disabilities, and/or are multi-lingual learners. Among these groups, Black students have been disproportionately affected. 

The National Education Association advocates for evidence-based behavioral practices rooted in restorative justice, rather than the criminalization and policing of students. NEA is committed to dismantling inequitable policies, practices, and systems that deprive students of opportunity and believes that all educators, including every adult working in our schools, are essential to transforming our schools into places that prepare every student to thrive. 

Protecting the Freedom to Teach and Learn

What's at Stake?  

School and public libraries are central to our ability to explore ideas, encounter new perspectives, and learn to think for ourselves. Whatever our color, background, or ZIP code, we want our children to have an education that imparts honesty about who we are, integrity in how we treat others, and freedom to pursue our dreams. 

Certain politicians have denied some children the resources they need for a high-quality education by purposefully mischaracterizing and stoking fears about what is taught in schools and calling for book bans. They would rather appease their billionaire donors than let parents and caregivers, trained educators and librarians ensure that our kids are prepared to face life's complex and challenging issues. 

Censoring books and resources written by mostly Black, brown, and LGBTQ+ authors denies students the ability to see themselves and understand our similarities and our differences. Limiting access to knowledge suppresses our freedoms to grow, learn and contribute to our communities.

We’re joining together to make sure every student has to look no further than the shelves of their own school libraries to find books that show they are reflected and respected. 

Protecting Civil Rights in Schools

The purpose of the Office for Civil Rights, part of the Department of Education, is to promote equal access to education for every child in America through vigorous enforcement of civil rights laws. The Trump administration has gutted the Office for Civil Rights, closing offices and leaving students who face discrimination or harassment based on race, sex, national origin, or disability without the support they are entitled to under the law. At the same time, the Department of Education has shifted all its efforts to investigating and threatening schools and higher education institutions with loss of funding if they do not comply with the administration’s views.

We reject these tactics that are meant to weaken schools' ability to ensure equal educational opportunities for all students. All students should be able to learn and thrive at school no matter where they come from, their race, sex, gender identity, or disability, and we will continue to work to move our country forward and make this a place of liberty and justice for all – no exceptions.

We Will Not Go Back

Civil rights protections in schools ensure all students have equitable access to education, which is why educators, parents, and communities are fighting hard to preserve the federal agencies that enforce civil rights laws. Learn more about this fight and why we need the Department of Education and Office for Civil Rights.