U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker supports school choice in op-ed
ATHENS, GA - SEPTEMBER 11: Former running back Herschel Walker for the Georgia Bulldogs on the sidelines against the UAB Blazers in the first half at Sanford Stadium on September 11, 2021 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Brett Davis/Getty Images) (Getty Images)
U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker shared his views on school choice, which he said were formed by childhood experiences, in an op-ed for FOX News on Friday.
Walker's piece, titled "School choice is gateway to the American Dream," explains he had a speech impediment as a child and struggled in school.
"I was embarrassed to speak up in class or to ask my teachers for help, so my grades suffered," Walker wrote. "I lived in fear of what my classmates might do or say to me next on the playground."
Support from family and coaches helped him improve his grades, he said.
"With the help of God, my parents, teachers, and coaches, I went from having some of the worst grades to being one of Johnson County’s best students," Walker wrote. "As a product of public education, I was able to achieve the American dream because of all the support I had. Unfortunately, this is not the case for many kids living in lower-income communities."
Walker went on to star as a running back for the University of Georgia football team, where he won a Heisman Trophy as the nation's top college football player in 1982.
Walker paraphrased former President Donald Trump, calling education the "civil rights issue of our day."
"More than 3.3 million students across America attend charter schools, and over half are black or Hispanic," Walker said. "In my home state of Georgia, we have scholarship programs that give kids from Bankhead to Buckhead access to a quality education."
Walker is campaigning to unseat the Rev. Sen. Raphael Warnock, who won a special election to fill the seat of late former Sen. Johnny Isakson.
Republican leaders are starting to rally around Walker. Trump publicly encouraged Walker to enter the race and gave a swift endorsement after he announced his campaign formally.