The Firing of School Choice Advocate Corey DeAngelis Is Classic Cancel Culture
Corey DeAngelis, an education researcher known for his vigorous advocacy of school choice, has been fired by his primary employer, the American Federation for Children (AFC), a person familiar with the situation tells Reason. (DeAngelis is also a senior fellow at the Reason Foundation, which publishes this website.)
DeAngelis regularly feuds on social media with supporters of the education status quo, including Democratic politicians, media figures, and teachers union leader Randi Weingarten. But he is currently at odds with some allies who have turned on him following revelations that he previously performed in a pornographic film for gay audiences.
The trouble began on September 20, when the conservative Substack Current Revolt called attention to his history with the porn industry. Several conservative organizations then rescinded invitations for him to speak, and AFC fired him.
“Corey is no longer at AFC,” a spokesperson for the group told Reason in an email. “We wish him well in his next endeavors, and we remain focused on our mission to expand educational opportunity for families, particularly lower-income families, across the country.”
DeAngelis declined to comment, but he wrote on X: “As an activist for parental rights and school choice, my passion is personal. Just like everyone else, I have made mistakes throughout my life, learned from those mistakes, used that as an opportunity to grow and tried to channel that experience into something positive. I was a victim of poor decisions and poor influences. I have turned that experience into the fuel that fires me to save young people from being put in the same position I was put in and to help parents protect their children. I will never stop fighting for what is right.”
What’s happening to DeAngelis is a classic example of cancel culture: He is being punished for a regretted incident from his distant past that has nothing to do with his current job. Conservative organizations may well have morals clauses in their contracts, and they are free to hire and fire at will. But any institution tha
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