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Today across America we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a heroic visionary who dedicated his life to social justice and equality.

At the same time, more than 50 years after Dr. King shared his dreams of equality and opportunity on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, millions of children are being denied of each in failing schools. Where is the equality when only 34 percent of our nation’s 8th graders are proficient in math and reading? Where is opportunity when education in the United States ranks 36th among industrialized nations?

Last week, I had the pleasure to meet two outstanding young men who are proving that we can do better. Danial and Jay, a senior and junior at D.C.’s Friendship Collegiate Academy Public Charter School, are both halfway to completing a bachelor’s degree before graduating high school!

How?

They and their parents had the freedom to choose! Danial and Jay are making the most of the options afforded them – and showing what could be possible if those same options are extended to millions of families that still don’t have a choice.

Danial and Jay chose a school with a rigorous computer science offering that most traditional public schools in D.C. simply can’t offer. In D.C., and in urban districts across the country, the conventional thinking is: “Those kids don’t need innovation or technology in the classroom.” Seems crazy in this day and age, but this same argument was used to deny applications for new charter schools in the Nation’s Capital just this past year. I know. It makes my blood boil too!

Contrary to proponents of the status quo, “those kids” are excelling when provided a choice – and families are starting to take notice. According to our recent poll, 54 percent of African Americans would be more likely to send their child to a school that offered a blended learning curriculum.

So, why in America do we still lack the freedom to choose?

Simply put, our elected officials have yet to fully embrace Dr. King’s fight for social justice and equality – because they have not addressed the most important equalizer that exists.

Education.

Today it’s up to us to carry the torch Dr. King lit. School choice is the civil rights issue of our time. Together, we can make schools work better for all children, regardless of race, income or zip-code.

Let’s keep today’s lessons close over the next year, because there are millions of students just like Danial and Jay. Freedom rang for them. Now, let’s make it ring for all the other kids that nothing more than the chance that choice represents.