"Separate but equal."

"Separate but equal."

That's how people defended decades of preventing Black children from excelling at – or even accessing – the quality education white kids got. And because that education was the surest way to get a leg up in the world, "separate but equal" became the go-to excuse for all structural racism.

Brown v. Board of Education changed that 71 years ago. But while kids of all backgrounds have the opportunity to go to school together now, there's still deeply ingrained inequity in education across this country.

Just 14 months ago, Donald Trump signed an executive order to begin closing the Department of Education, the office responsible for protecting two core tenets of the Brown ruling:

1. Overseeing special education programs that keep kids who need support from falling through the cracks.
2. Acting as the chief enforcer of civil rights laws in public education.

In other words, making sure our public education system serves the public.

By trying to eliminate the Department of Education, the Trump Administration is attacking our kids' civil rights.

I've been working my whole career to make sure our schools are stable, safe, and scholarly community hubs where our kids can spend their days. For starters, that has meant making sure the DOE has the resources it needs to support struggling schools. Recently, I've introduced a bill to properly fund student meal programs in underfunded schools. My bill would increase access to locally grown food, improve nutrition, and expand programs like breakfast in the classroom and afterschool snacks so our kids are healthy, not hungry.

Our kids learn best when they're happy, healthy, and safe; "separate but equal" undermines all three.

I'm running for reelection this year to make sure our kids – all our kids – have every opportunity to succeed.

We owe it to our kids to act now, to elect Democrats across the country who will join the fight to make our schools – and the students in them – as strong as they can be. We can't do it unless we hold Donald Trump and his administration accountable. And we can't do that unless we take back the House. But we can do it. And with your help, we will.

In solidarity,

Jim