Exposing the Spectre

Resisting Neoliberal Education Reforms in Manitoba

Abstract

In 2021, the government of Manitoba made their plans to reform public education overt with Bill 64. Although the legislation was withdrawn as a result of immense opposition from critically engaged Manitobans, the government did not abandon its neoliberal reform plans. Instead, the spectre of Bill 64 now lingers through a variety of new educational initiatives. In response, People for Public Education is working to keep the fight against the privatization of public education alive. Through consciousness raising and by constructing hopeful and imaginative visions of the future, this nascent community advocacy group strives to protect public education from the deleterious effects of neoliberalism. In this article, I reflexively interrogate and critically analyze the emergence, evolving objectives, values, and actions of People for Public Education for the purpose of inspiring future resistance against neoliberal education reforms.