In 1991, it seemed difficult to comprehend how 8,800 prison cells were on the drawing board in New York State. Yet the prospect of building new schools to replace our crumbling schools had become a dream deferred. So the question is asked: Where were the political pundits who campaigned on a platform for education? How had their commitment to education manifested itself? Today we see the results of their actions.
"There are currently two million Americans in prison -- 25 percent of the world's prison population. In the US, it costs $56 billion dollars a year to maintain our nation's prisons, and an additional $2.6 billion dollars is poured into building new ones annually. Therefore, the Architects, Designers and Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR) are calling for designers to stop investing our national economic and social resources in the construction and renovation of prisons," announced ADPSR in January of 2006
"Prisons drain our economy our money that could be used for education and social services."
According to the ACLU, "The 'school-to-prison pipeline' describes an alarming trend wherein public elementary, middle and high schools are pushing youth out of classrooms and into the juvenile justice and criminal justice system. Under the banner of 'zero tolerance,' schools increasingly are relying on inappropriately harsh discipline and, increasingly, law enforcement, to address trivial schoolyard offenses among even the youngest students."
"Hearing sponsors in Florida heard testimony from innumerable witnesses, including prosecutors and juvenile court judges, who expressed grave concerns that schools have turned away from education-based approaches to discipline and now handle far too many instances of typical student misbehavior by relying on law enforcement and the courts, and imposing punishments that needlessly remove students from school," said the NAACP in 2007.
In May 2007, Congressman Rangel addressed the United Federation of Teachers. He cautioned against allowing the streets to educate our youth. Rangel called for government incentives to develop youth and not give up on those who have fallen. He reminded us of the 2 million children who are "locked up" and the high cost of incarceration of these children; the incarceration which costs the taxpayer approximately $100,000.00 per annum for a youth-offender on Rikers Island.
Today, Rangel advocates for more resources in the schools as well as different resources for the myriad problems which the students have to face. "If we can spend 10 billion dollars on an unnecessary war, we can feed the minds of our kids." said Rangel. "We cannot survive by losing one half of the brain power."
It was forty years ago that Martin Luther King addressed the UFT. At that time he said the following:
"The richest nation on earth has never allocated enough of its abundant resources to build sufficient schools, to compensate adequately its teachers, and to surround them with the prestige their work justifies. We squander funds on highways and the frenetic pursuit of recreation , on the overabundance of overkill armaments, but we pauperize education."
Surely, Rangel has an awesome task ahead as the new chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee. He is in the position of power in a place where he can influence change: Our Nation's Capital. And as a well-seasoned public servant, who has remained on the frontline on many battles from 1948 to the present, we can be assured that the future of this nation is in good hands. However, as Americans we have every right to challenge those who represent us in government. We have every right to hold legislators accountable for the pledges they have made regarding their commitment to education. We can see from the past mistakes of legislators exactly why it would have been more economically sound and beneficial to this nation if the legislators had invested in education and not in prisons.
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