Florida law governing the tax credit scholarship program gives vouchers to low-income families to use as tuition for their children in private schools but does not adequately protect the rights of English Language Learners (ELLs), shortchanging Latino students and other groups learning English as an additional language from receiving proper instruction. This flaw in Florida law must be rectified in order to improve educational opportunities for Latinos.
Hispanic dedication to civil rights runs deep, and so does our concern for ELLs. We’ve advocated for fair employment policies, improved working conditions for migrant workers, voter rights, environmental justice, and comprehensive immigration reform.
Our cultural backgrounds define us as a distinct ethnolinguistic group. Accordingly, we advocated against English- only policies in Arizona, California, Florida, and Massachusetts. We’ve argued for bilingual education and for adequate funding for programs for ELLs. Our organizations were the moving force behind court ordered consent decrees on behalf of ELLs in Colorado, Florida, and New York.
