Death by a thousand cuts: privatizing public education in the USA

“Death by a Thousand Cuts” surveys the controversial, market-driven, education reform movement in the United States: where it came from, how it operates, and what it has delivered so far. The historically strong commitment of Americans to public education has been under assault since the resurgence of laissez-faire economics in the 1980s and the decline of government commitment to racial integration. The neoliberal education strategy has included an ongoing campaign to convince Americans that public schools are failing, policies that transfer public resources to privately run schools, and financing political support at all levels of government for privatization. An investigation of two key policies—charter schools and publicly funded vouchers—reveals how they have resulted in academic failures, widespread corruption, and increased racial and economic segregation. Despite the radical conservative hold on power in the United States, grassroots efforts to preserve democratically controlled public education have produced some creditable local victories.