Tell State Legislators: Fulfill Promise to Students and Invest in Ethnic Studies, Now!

Students, educators, and community members across the state, and country, have been calling for Ethnic Studies since the 1960s. Yet still we do not see meaningful or equitable implementation of Ethnic Studies in our K-12 schools.

After legislation in 2019 and 2020 "encouraging" Ethnic Studies statewide, the promise to students has not been fulfilled. After years of pushing for legislation to authentically and meaningfully invest in Ethnic Studies, Washington Ethnic Studies Now has finally made some progress with some promising priorities to build systematic support for Ethnic Studies statewide.

Washington Ethnic Studies Now (WAESN) has convened a coalition of leaders, experts, youth, and families to recenter this important work with those who have lived experience. The fight for Ethnic Studies continues this 2025 Session.

Take action with us to call on state lawmakers to take action:

1. Sign on to endorse WAESN's Legislative Priorities!

2. Send an email to your legislators!

WAESN's 2025 legislative priorities for this session come from working with OSPI and Representative Sharon Tomiko Santos (LD 37 and Chair of House Education Committee) to ensure the state fulfills their promise to students and invest in a long term vision for Ethnic studies.

To begin, we must reform and reinvest in our teacher preparation programs, so our state develops a workforce of anti-racist and culturally responsive educators. Second, we must build ethnic studies programs and a Program Director at OSPI that works to center community with lived experience in the process of developing educator resources.


While Ethnic Studies faces opposition from right-wing organizations that push anti-CRT rhetoric, we know that liberated ethnic studies is grounded in a loving critique that benefits all students.

Liberated pan-ethnic studies encourages intersectional solidarity, as demonstrated during our advocacy in the 2024 session and in our work to fight divide and conquer strategies of the past.

Please read more about the history of this advocacy and why this session presents the next steps in movement work for Ethnic Studies with this post by Executive Director of WAESN, Dr. Tracy Castro Gill.