I was not around in 1896 when the Supreme Court case, Plessey v. Fergeson, gave Black children the right to attend school in separate buildings from white children.

I was graduating from high school in 1954 when the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that “separate” was not “equal.” It was obvious that Black children were not given equal opportunity when separated in different schools. Dwight D. Eisenhower, a Republican, was the president.

In 1965, I was out of college when congress led by President Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat, declared the “War on Poverty.” Title I would give disadvantaged children a chance to experience the American Dream and the opportunity to rise above the economic status of their parents. To do this, funds were allocated to schools in low income communities.

In 1980, the Congress and President Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, set up the Department of Education to oversee educational programs and guarantee the money designated for public education was allocated fairly.

In 1975, I was beginning a graduate program to work with special needs children at the University of Oregon. That year, Congress and Republican President Gerald Ford decided that U.S. children who had special needs or disabilities should have an education in the “least restrictive environment.”

In 2025 the Republicans and President Donald Trump have decided to do away with all the efforts of 129 years to provide opportunities for all children to a good education.

Evelyn Swart

Joseph