"Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today." This was said by Malcolm X on June 28, 1964. He spoke out for African American equality, justice, education, and freedom. This same fight for education happened in the 1800s for free public education. During the antebellum period, there were many problems including drinking, crime, and public education. These problems all called for reform movements, changes in lifestyle, and new laws. One of these issues was a lack of public schools. Before the 19th century, there were only a small percentage of schools that were free and open to everyone. Horace Mann and the American Education Reform movement changed that. The American Education Reform Movement …show more content…
This is further proven by the children of all ages, genders, and racial complexion being depicted living as equals, playing a game together. The words on the right of the picture say “no caste” which means there is no social pyramid when it comes to school. This goes to show that the school system was motivated by humanitarian concerns because of the fight for no religion in schools and the equality that everyone had while they were within the walls of the school. The education reform movement in 19th-century America was motivated by humanitarian concerns evident through the creation of free public schools for all and a curriculum that focused on knowledge, moral values, and the future of America. It sought to preserve the peace in America by teaching kids the correct morals. It focuses on the happiness and success of the future generations. Because these schools were free and allowed all people to attend, they enabled everyone to have equal chances at success. Public schools today are still aiming to allow all people to have equal opportunities for success, but they are not able to provide the same education for everyone. Public schools in poor towns lack funding to pay teachers and provide resources. This can really affect how well the people in those towns are educated. This can make the chances of success in poor towns much lower. These issues need to be fixed because education is the foundation of knowledge and creativity in America. Future generations need a good education to thrive and evolve. As Horace Mann said: “A chained body cannot do much harm; a chained mind can do as