To the Editor:
The Thomas B. Fordham Institute’s recently issued report on school voucher programs, described in your article “Transparency Time for Vouchers?” (April 1, 2009), offers nothing new, but simply reiterates the same tired old line: “Give us your money, go away, and shut up.”
On Page 9 of the report, for example, we are told that “voucher laws and programs should take vows of silence regarding participation in religious instruction or activities.” And on Page 19, it continues in this vein, saying “school ‘inputs’ and operations (such things as teacher qualifications, admissions policies, and discipline procedures) ought not be further regulated by government.” In other words, Fordham wants taxpayers to blindly fund private schools that practice divisive forms of selectivity, discrimination, and indoctrination that would not be permitted in public schools. Is it any wonder then that voters and lawmakers consistently reject voucher plans?
Edd Doerr
President
Americans for Religious Liberty
Silver Spring, Md.
