Lucille Roybal-Allard: “the Republican Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill cuts bilingual education programs by 75 percent. This massive cut…”

“the Republican Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill cuts bilingual education programs by 75 percent. This massive cut penalizes and punishes children by robbing them of their constitutional right to equal educational opportunities. The primary objective of bilingual education is to teach children English while ensuring they do not fall behind in other basic subjects. Numerous studies have documented that many limited English proficient students simply cannot learn and compete in the classroom without these programs. As a result, the Republican plan will create a permanent underclass of poorly educated children who will be denied the opportunity to achieve their full potential. We as a country cannot maintain our competitiveness in an ever-growing, highly technical global economy unless we develop the talents and abilities of all our children. The virtual elimination of bilingual education programs works against our children and our national interests.”