April 6, 2023
(Testimony delivered by Wisconsin Democracy Campaign's Racial Equity and Economic Justice Advocate Iuscely Flores at a hearing held by the Wisconsin Legislature's Joint Finance Committee on Wednesday, April 5, at the Waukesha County Expo Center.)
Hello, my name’s Iuscely Flores and I’m the racial equity and economic justice advocate at the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.
Currently, Wisconsin has one of the most partisan gerrymandered maps in the country. Gerrymandering has worked to keep good legislation supported by the majority of Wisconsin residents from being enacted - including equitably funding our public K-12 schools and reinstating in-state tuition for undocumented students in our University system.
As a native Spanish speaker, let me tell you that there is no word for gerrymandering in Spanish. The nearest way to translate the term is to call it falsifying an election. When we think of those in control falsifying our election, we have to think about how that impacts our state's young people.
When I think about how gerrymandering has impacted my life I can’t help but to think of Act 10 and 2011. I was about to go to college after attending Milwaukee Public School systems my entire life only to find out that, because of my legal status, I would have to pay out-of-state tuition. I come from a working-class family, and I had to work anywhere from 40-60 hours a week while attending school full time.
Prior to 2011 and Act 10, Wisconsin had in-state tuition for undocumented students, and we lost it after decisionmakers rigged our maps. How can a state that invests thousands of dollars in a single student's public education, betray them when they attempt to go to a university in the state and pay back all of the years they learned for free?
I already didn’t qualify for FAFSA, federal or state grants, and even scholarship opportunities were limited to less than $500.
One year alone cost me $16,000.
We lose so many of our young people to states that welcome them with open arms, we lose so many smart and talented students. I want to ask that you consider reinstating tuition equity in Wisconsin.
A healthy democracy thrives on active participation. If we truly value democracy, we should establish systems and practices that encourage participation early and often in the lives of our young people. We ask that you invest in our now, and support young people in this state.
Thanks for considering my views.