US President Donald Trump has announced on several occasions that he intends to sign an executive order to begin the process of eliminating the Department of Education. This action is part of the strategy led by Elon Musk to reduce bureaucracy and federal public administration, and which considers public servants "parasites" of the state. This situation has created a feeling of uncertainty, fear and enormous instability among workers. Many of them have already been fired with a simple email notifying them overnight that they do not need to return to work.
By abolishing the Department of Education, Trump would also be reducing to a minimum the funding for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies, which prioritize equal opportunities. In a country like the United States – where education is decentralized and mainly managed by states and local school districts – the main function of the federal Department of Education is to guarantee educational equity and establish policies for equal opportunities, with educational programs that especially care for students from families in poverty or with special needs. The department supports and funds 7.5 million US students with disabilities, to whom it offers special education services; it supports 26 million schools with children living in poverty; and it oversees federal loans and scholarships for university students. Another front of attack by the Trump administration are initiatives that promote education in values of respect for diversity and difference. In addition to the thousands of layoffs of public employees, there are forced temporary layoffs for workers who have received training on attention to diversity in schools. And up to $600 million has been cut in funding for organizations that train teachers on issues related to diversity, equity, inclusion, racism and social justice in general.
The climate of terror and confusion has been compounded by suspicion and denunciation since the Department of Education itself launched the initiative on its public portal on February 27 EndDEI, where parents, students, or teachers can file complaints against a school or district for “suspicious” DEI-friendly practices funded with public funds. Threats and fears are spreading. But forms of resistance are also multiplying.
In the midst of this attack on the values of justice and democracy, it is more important than ever to understand how authoritarian regimes move to confront it. In his book On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons We Should Learn from the 20th CenturyIn his book, historian Timothy Snyder warns of the subtle ways in which democracies can be eroded and lists possible ways to combat and resist it. The first lesson? “Don’t obey in advance.” Above all, avoid adapting to new authoritarian realities even before they are imposed by force. This lesson from a 20th century marked by Nazi and Soviet totalitarianism resonates very strongly today both among American citizens and close to home. Another way of saying that we should not obey in advance is: “Resist from the start.” Resistance and hope are the response of teachers’ associations in the US, which actively oppose Trumpist policies and propose not to give up any space without a fight. Legal resistance to the administration’s policy in schools is increasing. The American Federation of Teachers has filed a lawsuit alleging unconstitutionality against the changes in the Department of Education. Educational officials and organizations are joining with nonprofits and local governments to challenge the executive orders and claim they violate the U.S. Constitution.
What happens far away resonates close by: in Ripoll, teachers, students and parents are resisting policies that incite hatred and deny the fundamental values of education. Last Tuesday, the educational community of the Abat Oliba Institute in Ripoll, in an exemplary manner, refused to obey the orders of the mayor, Silvia Orriols, who had demanded that two photographs of students wearing Islamic veils be removed from a photography exhibition prepared by 149 2nd year ESO students. The school management refused. The municipal brigade, following orders from the mayor, papered over the windows so that the exhibition could not be seen, which was already installed in a municipal space, ready to be inaugurated. The school decided to disobey: they formed a human chain with families, neighbours and students to move the photographs to a space provided by a private individual.
Lesson number one in resistance: In a democracy, the first line of defense is – instead of sitting quietly while someone takes away your rights – to always refuse to give them up in advance.
