Project 2025: The Basics
Read my opinions on the agenda for the next conservative administration, Project 2025. Let's start with the basics.
7/17/20242 min read
By now, I’m sure you’ve heard of Project 2025, the “governing agenda … ready to carry out on Day One of the next conservative Administration.” I’ve been reluctant to speak on it until I had a full understanding of what it was and the policies it advocates for.
Considering the doctrine from a purely non-partisan standpoint, it is not good news. There are very strong positions on many points that will not bode well for students, educational staff, parents, and communities across the nation.
I’d like to offer my opinions on the aspects of Project 2025 that are pertinent to education. However, there are so many that my opinions couldn’t be reported in one post. There will be more to follow, but this post will focus on the basics.
Some of the broadest promises in Project 2025 are laid out by Kevin Roberts (from the Heritage Foundation) in the foreword, where the first promise is to “restore the family as the centerpiece of American life and protect our children.” I understand the sentiment behind this, as family is an important aspect of the way of life for the American people. What I don’t understand is when the family became an aspect that American life isn’t centered on anymore. Also, what do children need protecting from now that they didn’t five, ten, or twenty years ago?
Apparently, it’s things like “sexual orientation and gender identity” as well as “diversity, equity and inclusion,” and “reproductive rights.” Given that Project 2025 proposes to ban these terms (and seemingly the concepts behind them) at the federal level, the same will be true down to the local level and school districts. This is problematic. Schools are supposed to be institutions where students feel safe enough to explore who they are as people and grow. That’s difficult to do when any part of your identity is oppressed. No matter your stance on sexual orientation and gender identity, I think we can all agree that there is no need to ban the use of these words in any government setting, especially schools. It’s frivolous and harmful.
Stay tuned for more posts on aspects of Project 2025.
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