AFT President Calls for Solutions, Not Politics, in Response to Parents Bill of Rights Act, H.R. 5

WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement responding to the House of Representatives’ passage of H.R. 5, the Parents Bill of Rights Act:

“H.R. 5 has very little to do with actually helping students or parents. Instead, it would require schools to divert their limited resources from teaching, censor education, ban books, and harm children who are just trying to be themselves and live their lives in peace. Our kids deserve better. All of us do.

“Every day in classrooms and communities around the country, parents and educators work tirelessly together to make the lives of our kids better and provide them with the knowledge they need to excel—with books, art and music; tutoring programs and capstone projects; and counseling to help them navigate life, tackle challenges and deal with trauma. The true work of partnering to support families and help our kids do well involves having meaningful discussions about the real things affecting our students and what we, as a country, must do to help; that includes supporting our public schools, not divisive, performance politics.”