The pledge was signed by no teachers on Feb. 21, the day before. It now has three pledges from Hillsborough teachers.
They’re one of the thousands of US teachers pledging to continue educating students about the controversial Critical Race Theory, which explains racism is embedded in US culture and politics.
Comments from Hillsborough teachers included, "I want to be on the right side of history. Future generations will talk about this moment, the way legislators and extremist white supremacy groups used fear-mongering and conspiracy theories to stop teachers from teaching the truth. I want it to be known that I was one of countless educators nationwide who taught kids to identify, understand, and work to end racism, sexism, white supremacy culture, and the silencing of marginalized voices from our curricula. Teaching the truth does not mean teaching kids to hate America. It is teaching them that we all play a role in helping our country become a more perfect union" and "I agree that we need to honestly confront our painful history in order to chart a better future".
Though the concept was first suggested in the late 70’s, it has recently exploded as a contentious issue between the American right and left in the last two years.
Many who signed the pledge are defying state bans on the teachings. Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas have passed legislation banning discussions about the US being inherently racist.
Other states, such as Montana and South Dakota, have denounced the teachings without passing specific legislation.
In an interview with The Washington Free Beacon', Ashley Varner of the Freedom Foundation accused the Zinn Education Project of providing “left-leaning propaganda to teachers.”
| Teachers | Thoughts on Critical Race Theory |
|---|---|
| Dena Stanley | North Carolina is one of those states that has a House Bill like many of those other states. We have been able to fend it off so for the time being. But if nothing changes I'm sure it will passs eventually. |
| Jonathan McGovern | I agree that we need to honestly confront our painful history in order to chart a better future. |
| Kumar Sathy | I want to be on the right side of history. Future generations will talk about this moment, the way legislators and extremist white supremacy groups used fear-mongering and conspiracy theories to stop teachers from teaching the truth. I want it to be known that I was one of countless educators nationwide who taught kids to identify, understand, and work to end racism, sexism, white supremacy culture, and the silencing of marginalized voices from our curricula. Teaching the truth does not mean teaching kids to hate America. It is teaching them that we all play a role in helping our country become a more perfect union. |
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