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As Harris addresses educators' union, New Mexican delegates offer support

Vice-President Kamala Harris speaks at the American Federation of Teachers convention in Houston
Alice Fordham
/
KUNM
Vice-President Kamala Harris speaks at the American Federation of Teachers convention in Houston

Vice-President Kamala Harris spoke Thursday to a cheering crowd at the American Federation of Teachers, the first union to endorse her nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate.

As she warned that a second term for former President Donald Trump could see an erosion in federal education programs, educators including New Mexicans, who had gathered for the convention in Houston, described excitement and a groundswell of support for the presumptive nominee.

Harris reminded the room she was educated at public school. She said a second term for Trump could see the end of Head Start programs, which serve more than 800,000 people, and even the closure of the federal Department of Education.

Both proposals are included in the Project 2025 document from the conservative Heritage Foundation think-tank. Trump has distanced himself from the project but many of his allies are involved with the foundation.

Whitney Holland at the AFT convention in Houston
Alice Fordham
/
KUNM
Whitney Holland at the AFT convention in Houston

Whitney Holland is president of the Teachers Federation in New Mexico and also a Democratic delegate for the state. She described the energy in the room during the speech as off the charts.

"I think she did a really good job highlighting Project 2025, and talking about eliminating Head Start," Holland said.

"We at AFT believe like education is from cradle to career, and so that includes access to preK, and anything that jeopardizes that, it's not acceptable at this point. And all the progress that we've made in New Mexico is because we look holistically at our education system."

Another Project 2025 proposal is to change the way billions of dollars in federal funding are assigned under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Holland says that could have an outsized impact on New Mexico by jeopardizing funding for special education services.

"I think that goes back to Yazzie/Martinez," she said, referring to the landmark lawsuit that mandated support for New Mexico's historically underserved students, including children of color and those with disabilities.

"How do we fulfill the Yazzie/Martinez ruling if there's not funding and resources and support available at the national level," asked Holland. She added that she is looking forward to campaigning for Harris, despite the fact she did already have Biden-Harris promotional materials printed up.

"Just having a younger perspective, having a woman perspective," she said. "That makes me feel excited."

Harris also voiced support for greater gun control to combat violence in schools, loan forgiveness for teachers and an end to book bans.

Alice Fordham joined the news team in 2022 after a career as an international correspondent, reporting for NPR from the Middle East and later Latin America and Europe. She also worked as a podcast producer for The Economist among other outlets, and tries to meld a love of sound and storytelling with solid reporting on the community. She grew up in the U.K. and has a small jar of Marmite in her kitchen for emergencies.
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