Sorry Jay-Z You are Wrong on Vouchers
You are still married to Beyonce though so...you win
Separate but equal—well separate and severely unequal—is alive and well in the United States. In 1954, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional, signaling a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954). A brief victory that at least signaled that we were on the path to equality.
Shortly after the celebrations, however, the path to educational equality was far from clear. In the decades since this ruling, numerous strategies have been employed to undermine the decision and maintain segregationist policies. Among these, the use of school vouchers stands out as a particularly insidious method that is detrimental to the Black community and aims to reignite segregation. Brown was intended to dismantle the legal framework supporting racial segregation in public schools. The ruling was a significant victory for civil rights advocates, as it overturned the "separate but equal" doctrine established by Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896.
Was Brown a True Victory…Really?
After a small moment of joy, the shenanigans began. In obvious efforts to fight back widespread resistance, especially in the Southern United States took off. White citizens' councils and political leaders employed various tactics to resist desegregation.
In 1956, the “Southern Manifesto” formalized some notable attacks.[i] In this effort, 101 congressmen pledged to resist integration by any lawful means.
States implemented "freedom of choice" plans and other strategies designed to delay and obstruct desegregation. These efforts often included closing public schools entirely and opening private, segregated "academies" for white children, funded by public money—a precursor to the voucher system we see today. The words used then, and the words used now, are the same with a few tweaks for inflation I suppose. And this is where we are today—under the guise of “choice” many in our community are tricked into thinking we have just that, a choice, but the choices are made for us they were back then, and they are right now.
History of Hijinx
So, sorry Jay-Z—what you are doing is harmful to the Black community and you were led astray by the same shenanigans that began the day after Brown came down.
Before we get into the present, we should start with a little more history. In the wake of the Brown decision, multiple states devised creative and often extreme measures to avoid integrating their schools.
In Virginia, Senator Harry F. Byrd Sr. led a campaign known as "Massive Resistance" to prevent school desegregation. The state passed laws to cut off funding and close any public school that attempted to integrate. This led to the shutdown of entire school districts, such as those in Prince Edward County, where public schools remained closed from 1959 to 1964 while white students attended newly established private academies funded by state tuition grants.[ii] So white kids were able to continue with their publicly funded education free from the nuisance of the Black kids—all funded by Black and White tax dollars. Black + White still equals green.
Remember the “Little Rock Nine?” What may be lost in the passing of time is what was happening then and the impetus behind that pivotal moment. In Arkansas, then Governor Orval Faubus infamously decided to call in the National Guard to prevent Black students from entering Little Rock Central High School in 1957, a crisis that only ended when President Eisenhower intervened by sending federal troops to enforce integration. This was years after the Brown decision and other states, such as Louisiana and Alabama, similarly closed schools or enacted laws to delay integration as well.
It wasn’t just the closing of schools and blocking access entirely being used as tools in the racism toolbox—so too were efforts to create new schools or new districts to legally weed out the stench of blackness in the classroom.
Across the South, private segregation academies proliferated. These schools were established specifically to provide white children with a segregated education, often using public funds through tuition grants or tax credits. For example, in Mississippi, the Citizens' Councils—a network of white supremacist organizations—established several private schools to circumvent desegregation.[iii]
If that plan didn’t work, and sometimes even when it did, in many instances, school districts were redrawn to maintain racial separation. This practice, known as gerrymandering,[iv] ensured that Black students would remain in underfunded, overcrowded schools while white students attended better-resourced institutions. In some cities, this also involved the strategic placement of new schools and the adjustment of attendance zones to maintain racial divides. Today, this issue has evolved into a new term and concept of creating a “white fortress city” where not only have they tried to create new districts—new lax annexation policies have allowed for the creation of white cities that break away from the more diverse parts of an area.[v] This practice then consolidates resources and creates a well-funded public school and other public amenities, all at the expense of the less affluent –people of color- of the community they left behind.
If it Ain’t Broke…
This plan gets to the biggest issue with vouchers and the false concept of choice. The old adage of if it ain’t broke don’t fix it comes to mind but only because in this instance “conservative” lawmakers broke it—and then want to create a broken mechanism aimed at the illusion of fixing it.
One of the most pernicious strategies employed by conservative legislatures has been the systematic defunding of public schools. This deliberate underfunding serves to create a perception that public schools are failing, thereby justifying the diversion of public funds to private and charter schools through vouchers. This tactic has multiple layers of detrimental effects on the Black community and public education as a whole.
Conservative policymakers have often championed tax cuts and budget reductions that disproportionately affect public school funding. For instance, in states like Kansas and Wisconsin, significant tax cuts led to budget shortfalls, resulting in substantial cuts to public education. These cuts manifest in various forms—teacher layoffs, increased class sizes, reduced extracurricular programs, and outdated educational materials. As public schools struggle with these challenges, the narrative that they are inherently ineffective gains traction.
The manufactured crisis of public school "failure" is then used to promote voucher programs as a solution. Rather than addressing the root causes of educational disparities—such as underfunding and systemic inequities—vouchers exacerbate these problems by draining additional resources from the public school system. This creates a vicious cycle where public schools are continually deprived of the necessary funding to improve, while private schools benefit from public dollars without being held to the same standards of accountability and inclusivity.
Public schools have strict and state mandated accountability measures and must take everyone who wants to attend. Private schools? Nah. They can pick and choose who goes there, who gets to stay, and how they structure curriculum and the overall educational experience. This doesn’t even touch on the harmful and disgusting impact this has on children with special needs.
Rather than addressing systemic issues like poverty (and the corresponding racism) and the myriad of factors that go into the comprehensive world of a student, many conservative lawmakers are quick to point the blame at these diverse, overcrowded, and underfunded schools – and never seek to solve those issues but rather run from them. How about a little investment in those communities? What about paying teachers more and/or not attacking them for your own shortcomings? Looking at my own home state and school district in Louisville Kentucky—the rural legislature has done little to nothing to help the largest and urban school district of around 100,000 students but is quick to attack their every little problem, all while underfunding them for years. Across the state, this district is held up as the definition of failure and mismanagement and they argue those poor Black kids need a better choice, somewhere they can go and really have teachers who care and are able to learn.
In lieu of actually doing something productive, lawmakers have tried to find ways to deflect blame and save the white kids who are in those schools without doing much to improve the schools themselves. Their solution—create pathways for the white kids to escape and join other white kids but call it school choice. So that is where Jay-Z and the voucher scheme really comes into play.
Stayyyyyy Scheminnnnnn
The concept of school vouchers was originally introduced by economist Milton Friedman[vi] in the 1950s as a means to increase competition and improve educational outcomes. However, in practice, vouchers have often been used as a tool to perpetuate segregation. Vouchers allow public education funds to be diverted to private schools, which can—and often do—practice selective admissions. This has disproportionately disadvantaged Black students and other minorities, effectively undermining the promise of Brown.
In the years following desegregation, many white families used vouchers to send their children to private schools, avoiding integrated public schools. This trend has continued into the present day. Studies have shown that voucher programs often benefit middle- and upper-income families who can afford the additional costs of private education, leaving behind a public school system that is increasingly underfunded and predominantly attended by Black and Hispanic students.
Hurting Public(integrated) Schools is Okay
The use of vouchers has several detrimental effects on the Black community. Vouchers siphon much-needed funds away from public schools, which serve the majority of Black students. Public schools, already struggling with inadequate funding, face further budget cuts, leading to larger class sizes, reduced programs, and fewer resources. This perpetuates a cycle of supposed underachievement and limits the opportunities available to Black students.
Vouchers also further segregation. While not explicitly based on race, the socio-economic barriers created by voucher programs often result in de facto segregation. Moreover, voucher programs have been shown to often fail at improving educational outcomes. Studies, such as those conducted by the Economic Policy Institute, indicate that students using vouchers do not consistently perform better than their public-school counterparts.[vii] This undermines the argument that vouchers provide superior educational opportunities and highlights how they primarily serve to segregate and divide.
CHOICEEEEEEEEEE
The rhetoric used to promote vouchers often invokes the language of "choice" and "freedom," echoing the "freedom of choice" plans used in the 1950s and 1960s to resist desegregation. This framing obscures the fact that the so-called "choice" is not equally accessible to all families. In reality, it reinforces existing inequities and maintains the segregationist status quo under the guise of educational reform.
Don’t Fund White Private School with Black Dollars
The history of racist attacks on education following Brown v. Board of Education reveals a persistent effort to undermine desegregation and maintain racial inequality. The use of school vouchers represents a contemporary strategy in this ongoing struggle. By diverting funds from public schools and enabling selective admissions practices, vouchers perpetuate educational disparities and reignite segregation.
In Pennsylvania, Jay-Z is the face of a larger and troubling issue.[viii][ix] My granny wanted me to get a good education and to do something with myself. Many parents and grandparents want the same for their families. The shenanigans of the right have convinced many of them that the only option and way out is through private or charter schools of so-called choice. I don’t blame them. If you only hear one side or don’t see the conservative defunding of public schools that exacerbates the issues—it seems like a logical and beneficial decision.
The problem is much deeper than that. If we play into the hands of those arguing for vouchers, we are complicit in the greater scheme of the conservative movement. Once we accept the solution they present to the problem they created, the next step is going back to a system of schools where white and Black students are not learning together, and the Black kids are left behind. To fall into this trap, to make this “choice,” we re-create a school system that is truly separate—and unequal.
[i] https://history.house.gov/Historical-Highlights/1951-2000/The-Southern-Manifesto-of-1956/
[ii] https://virginiahistory.org/learn/civil-rights-movement-virginia/massive-resistance
[iii] https://www.mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov/issue/the-citizens-council
[iv] https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/items/7cb5d3f0-3ee6-4b8c-afd9-c00c46805a9f
[v] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-06-04/mulberry-st-george-city-secessions-foster-modern-day-segregation?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_content=citylab&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic
[vi] https://www.cato.org/blog/milton-friedman-school-choice-pioneer
[vii] https://www.epi.org/publication/book_vouchers/
[viii] https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/jay-z-roc-nation-300-million-scholarship-initiative-1235703422/
[ix] https://bossip.com/2659257/jay-z-dragged-for-300-million-educational-campaign-to-send-low-income-students-to-private-schools/