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The 2016 election had two surprises; the ascendance of Donald Trump – an outsider with no political experience, and the political upheaval created by socialist Democrat Bernie Sanders, who ran against economic inequality and the growing political influence of Wall Street and corporate America.

As a non-American who hails from Afghanistan, I found Sanders’ Campaign attractive and relevant. First, he was a unique, anti-establishment candidate. He was not taken seriously by many pundits, and was written off from the onset by Democratic Party elites because, unlike Hillary Clinton, he did not have the backing of Wall Street and corporate America. He was a different kind of candidate who defied established political norms. I felt he was the only candidate who offered serious solutions to major economic problems America faces today.

Sanders ultimately did not win the Democratic nomination but did make an impact on American politics by winning 22 states in the primary. He mobilized millennials in a way Clinton could only dream. American youth are usually known for being politically passive, but Bernie’s campaign electrified them big time. Every youngster “felt the Bern”. One of Sanders’ programs that significantly attracted millennial voters was his plan of free college tuition, which was to be paid for by a tax on Wall Street investors. Millennials grew up in the post-2008 recession era. They are graduating from college with huge debts and distressing uncertainty about landing jobs and affording homes. So Sanders’ appeal to young Americans was no surprise to me. This is the area – education - that I want to talk more about and link to the Democratic Party’s future.

Education Reform

Bernie Sanders’s campaign was a good start on the education front. His proposal for free college tuition is a step forward. It would make education more accessible for underprivileged Americans. This cause is worth fighting for, for two reasons. First, the person at the helm of President’s Trump’s education policy is a misfit. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has no professional experience in education and wants to cut funding for public education, favoring vouchers for private schools. For the working class, public schools are vital for achieving upward mobility. Anything that curtails the funding of public schools means many families will struggle in their quest for a better future. She has to be fought strongly. Secondly, Democrats have always focused on education; it is what they are known for. What better time than now to distinguish themselves from an elitist Republican agenda seeking to dismantle the public education system? Young Americans are the future. Catering to their educational needs is not only right, but a political investment for Democrats. And who is popular among millennials? Bernie Sanders. Hence the vital need to accommodate a progressive vision moving forward.

I personally want Democrats to promote equitable education because of its empowering effect. I hail from Afghanistan and there I have seen the significance of education in empowering Afghans, particularly women, who were long deprived of education, and excluded from social participation during the harsh reign of the Taliban. Access to publicly-funded education has resulted in more social inclusion, financial independence, and political participation for Afghan women. None of it would have been possible in a privatized education system with education debt being piled up enormously.

Women’s empowerment, enabled by education, is real in Afghanistan. Women are now cabinet ministers, members of parliament and human rights activists. To be politically active in politics, to be politically aware, and to be part of the policy making process, education is necessary. The vitality of education was stressed by Bernie Sanders, who educated voters about the possibilities for change through his campaign. An informed and educated electorate is vital to achieving liberty and democracy. If public education has done wonders in Afghanistan, which is far poorer than the U.S., I do not see why it cannot do wonders in America, which is far wealthier, with a superior educational infrastructure, and which struggles much less than Afghanistan with issues like illiteracy. Slashing funding for public schools and replacing them with a private system will mean increased educational struggles for the poor. America does not want to return to third-world conditions by removing access to public education. The U.S. has come too far to consider such a reactionary political agenda.

*(U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaking at the 2017 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland. Image credit: Gage Skidmore/ flickr).