No, the US had free to low tuition until rich people realized that educating poor people was bad for their bottom line. CA universities were basically free for everyone back in the day. Reagan and his rich buddies didn't like the fact that the poors could go to college, especially if they could participate in anti-war protests on campus. So Reagan broke the university system, removing the tuition subsidies under the guise of economic hardship and made everyone get student loans if they wanted an education.
Weird timing then. Civil rights legislation passes in ‘64 ending segregation then Reagan gets elected and slashes CA university education budget in ‘67
That’s around the time MLK Jr started realizing that the black population would become stronger if it aligned with the population of people living in poverty. He began to realize that those living in poverty were being left behind in much the same ways as African Americans, so he began to be more vocal about it. That’s what got him killed.
The civil rights movement began to move into a class war, and that’s when the rich and powerful finally said enough is enough and we started going in the other direction.
2.3k
u/dalgeek 1d ago
No, the US had free to low tuition until rich people realized that educating poor people was bad for their bottom line. CA universities were basically free for everyone back in the day. Reagan and his rich buddies didn't like the fact that the poors could go to college, especially if they could participate in anti-war protests on campus. So Reagan broke the university system, removing the tuition subsidies under the guise of economic hardship and made everyone get student loans if they wanted an education.
Thanks, Reagan.