The literacy crisis is real, and we will not solve it with half measures. We need a wholesale change in how we train teachers and how we teach reading. That is why we must pass my Right to Read bill, A.78. Balanced literacy has failed too many children. We need a systematic, structured, cumulative approach to reading instruction rooted in phonics and the core pillars of literacy. States across the country, including California, are making this shift. New York should lead, not be the last state in the nation to reform. You can’t claim to care about social justice, progress or social mobility if you do not care about literacy. Literacy is the gateway to opportunity.