Week in Review: Honor the Legacy of Our Fallen Heroes

Here’s how we can honor our fallen heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice, Goldwater Institute Director of National Litigation Jon Riches, a Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, writes this Memorial Day weekend:

Throughout our nation this weekend, Americans will honor those who have fallen in defense of our country and our way of life. Many worthy tributes will be made in solemn gratitude for this ultimate sacrifice. And as a grateful nation gives tribute, we should also be reminded that words alone are inadequate to repay those who laid down their lives for us.

As we honor the final sacrifice of our nations’ heroes this weekend, let us also honor the legacy of freedom for which they fought. And let us continue that legacy by working—in ways big and small—to ensure that freedom will endure.

Please join us in remembering with deep gratitude those who lost their lives in the cause of liberty.

Bureaucrats Reverse Course After Goldwater Demands They Follow the Law

Two days. That’s how long it took for the Arizona Department of Education to reopen its Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) portal after the Goldwater Institute demanded it stop taking away families’ education options.

ESAs, which Goldwater pioneered in Arizona more than a decade ago, have offered families more choices by putting money that would otherwise go toward a given student’s public education into an account that parents can use to customize their child’s education experience. But last week, the Department said it was closing applications for the ESA program for the fourth quarter, even though a judge said last year that the agency is required by law to accept applications year-round.

“Fortunately, after Goldwater sent a letter to the agency last week demanding it follow the law, the Department…reopened applications for the fourth quarter,” Goldwater Vice President for Litigation Timothy Sandefur writes at In Defense of Liberty. “We’re glad the Department has reversed course—and hope that it will continue complying with the law going forward.”

Read more of Sandefur’s analysis at In Defense of Liberty. 

Teacher Exposes CRT, Demands Academic Transparency

When Kali Fontanilla, a veteran teacher of 15 years, discovered that her California public school was indoctrinating students with the lies of Critical Race Theory, she spoke out in an exclusive Goldwater Institute video and investigative report. Now, in a new video for PragerU, Kali is once again sounding the alarm and urging parents to support Goldwater’s policy solution: a landmark academic transparency reform that shines a light on public school curricula.

“I found classroom activities such as a ‘privilege quiz’ where students would compare and contrast their gender, race, class, and sexual orientation with those of their classmates,” Kali says of a mandatory “ethnic studies” class. But parents can fight back by arming themselves with knowledge, she explains.

“Demand that your school district’s lessons and materials be made accessible online, so you can see what your child is being taught,” Kali tells parents. That’s exactly why Goldwater crafted our Academic Transparency Act to protect parents’ right to find out what their children are learning by requiring public schools to publish their learning materials online.

You can watch Kali’s PragerU video here, and you can find out more about Goldwater’s academic transparency reform here.

Save the Date! Goldwater 2022 Annual Dinner, Featuring Glenn Beck

Arizona’s premier liberty event returns for an in-person celebration on Friday, October 7, and you are cordially invited!

The Goldwater Institute is successfully working daily in capitols, communities, and courtrooms to defend and strengthen Americans’ freedoms. In celebration of our accomplishments, we invite you to attend the 2022 Goldwater Institute Annual Dinner —”Winning The Fight For Freedom”—featuring radio host and best-selling author Glenn Beck.

You can find out more about our Annual Dinner and RSVP here.