A “political ploy” is in the making in Albany that would restore budget cuts to the city in welfare, health or revenue sharing while giving state aid to parochial schools–thus forcing city legislators opposed to parochial to vote for the bill “to save New York City from bankruptcy,” it was asserted last night. Mrs. Florence Flast, vice chairman of the Committee for Public Education and Religious Liberty (PEARL), made the charge at the monthly public agenda meeting of the Board of Education. She spoke in behalf of 31 civic, religious and educational organizations that make up PEARL in urging the Board publicly to oppose any legislation giving public funds to nonpublic schools. Mrs. Flast, who is a former president of the United Parents Associations, declared: “Rumors out of Albany suggest that the Governor and legislative leaders are preparing a new tax package which will provide $65 million in additional funds for nonpublic schools. A neat political ploy would be used, combining restoration of some of the budget cuts–in welfare, health or revenue sharing to the city–and parochial aid, all in the same supplementary budget bill.” In this way city legislators–even those who oppose parochial–would be forced to vote for the bill to save New York City from bankruptcy or to save the jobs of thousands of civil servants, Mrs. Flast said, adding; “Guz constitutional protections of religious liberty and public education are being bartered away and the public is left powerless to stop the onslaught.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
