Tag: Black History Month

Maine Elementary School Skips Math, Literacy Classes to Organize Children in Black Lives Matter March

Susan Berry, PhD

Videos and other documents obtained by Parents Defending Education (PDE) have revealed an elementary school in Portland, Maine, cancelled its math and literacy classes to enable teachers to organize students in a social justice march that included children chanting “Black Lives Matter (BLM)” and waving signs.

The national parental rights organization that opposes indoctrination in schools submitted a public records request to Portland Public Schools for the documents and emails related to the BLM march that was reported to have been originally planned at Presumpscot Elementary School on February 28 – the end of “black history month,” but was ultimately delayed until March 3.

Read the full story

School District Enlists ‘Black Lives Matter Task Force’ to Help Teach 7th Graders How They’re Implicitly Biased

Admin

A California school district enlisted its Black Lives Matter Task Force to help teach 7th graders about their implicit bias during Black History Month, according to the curriculum obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

In an effort to address “issues related to racial justice,” Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) requires 7th through 12th grade teachers to use a curriculum created by the schools’ Black Lives Matter Task Force, a coalition dedicated to creating equity for African American students and staff within the district, according to screenshots of the curriculum obtained by the DCNF. The curriculum teaches students about the “daily effects of white privilege” and “implicit bias.”

Read the full story

Commentary: School Choice is the Best Way for Ohio’s Kids to Escape Critical Race Theory

Admin

Black History Month, which begins Wednesday, offers an opportunity to address a major threat to black economic advancement, racial harmony, and national prosperity: critical race theory.

CRT is a neo-Marxist doctrine that permeates many aspects of American education today. Recent hidden camera footage of Ohio educators demonstrates how intractable CRT really is. Proposed state school choice legislation will empower families to pull their children from these schools and choose alternatives that teach the real skills needed to succeed in today’s economy.

Read the full story

Superintendent of Public Education Balow Publishes Report on VDOE Material Removed for ‘Inherently Divisive Concepts’

Eric Burk

Virginia’s new education administration has removed many of the equity training materials that used to be on the Virginia Department of Education website, according to a report from Superintendent of Public Education Jillian Balow. The removals and the report were ordered by Governor Glenn Youngkin in his first executive order, aimed at removing “inherently divisive concepts” from public education. That was a measure to fulfill a campaign promise to ban Critical Race Theory (CRT), but the order and subsequent actions go beyond material that explicitly references CRT.

“This interim report rescinds certain policies, programs, and resources that promote discriminatory and divisive concepts as directed by Executive Order One. It also contains a sampling of critical race theory-based materials,” Balow wrote in a letter accompanying the report.

Read the full story

Biden Plans New Restraints on Law Enforcement, Even as Blacks Oppose Cutting Police Spending: Report

Admin

President Joe Biden plans to roll out executive actions on police reform in honor of Black History Month this February, three sources familiar with the matter told NBC News, despite the fact that most black Americans polled support a police presence in their communities.

The executive legislation would come shortly after the fight by President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Senate Democrats to pass voting rights legislation.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki during a briefing Thursday said: “We’re very supportive of the efforts to negotiate police reform on a bipartisan level. Obviously, that didn’t move forward as we would have hoped.”

Read the full story

Utah House Passes Bill to Ban Critical Race Theory in Public Schools

Admin
Students in class, listening to the teacher at the front of the room

Utah is one of many states in America considering banning critical race theory in public schools.

Republican State Representative Steve Christiansen sponsored a bill that takes direct aim at critical race theory concepts being taught in public education. The bill passed the Utah House and is awaiting the signature of the Speaker to move onto the state Senate.

That bill, HR901, calls on the Utah Board of Education for a re-evaluation of guidelines to weed out critical race theory in publicly funded classrooms.

Read the full story

Mason Public School Teacher Quits After School Refuses Radical Black Lives Matter Teaching Curriculum

Peter D'Abrosca

A Mason Public Schools special education teacher resigned Friday after the school district refused to allow her to indoctrinate students with a radical Black Lives Matter and social justice curriculum.

Katelyne Thomas was a first through fifth grade teacher in the school system near Lansing, who in January suggested to her superiors that the school should implement the Black Lives Matter at School learning program during the first week of February, which is Black History Month, according to The Detroit Free Press.

Read the full story

Music Spotlight: Chris Pierce

Bethany Bowman

Chris Pierce is one of the most accomplished artists I have interviewed. He has opened for legends, like BB King, Al Green, Seal, Aaron Neville, and Colbie Callait. He has a big imprint in the sync world with his music being featured on shows like Brothers and Sisters, In Plain Sight, Eli Stone, What About Brian, and Army Wives to name a few. Most recently, the songwriter gained national attention with “We Can Always Come Back To This”, a song he co-wrote for the #1 NBC primetime series This is Us, peaked at #1 on the Billboard Blues Chart.

Read the full story

Michigan Gov. Whitmer Draws First 2022 Republican Challenger

Peter D'Abrosca

Michigan’s Democrat governor has drawn her first challenger of the 2022 election cycle, and that candidate is already raising eyebrows. 

“From a seemingly homemade podium on his virtual stage, 35-year-old Austin Chenge is amassing thousands of social media followers as the first Republican candidate to enter the 2022 race for Michigan governor,” FOX17 reported. 

Read the full story

Wisconsin Legislators Spent Two Days Debating About Colin Kaepernick

Anthony Gockowski

Wisconsin legislators spent Tuesday and Wednesday arguing over whether or not ex-NFL star Colin Kaepernick’s name should be included in a resolution honoring Black History Month. According to The Capital Times, the Wisconsin Legislature’s Black Caucus had included Kaepernick’s name in a ceremonial resolution, which honored African Americans who have “made measurable differences in their respective communities.” Republicans objected to his inclusion on the list, and instead put forward an alternative resolution that didn’t include his name. That resolution, which ultimately passed along party lines, replaced Kaepernick with the state’s first black lieutenant governor and first black secretary of state, among others. “The Wisconsin Legislative Black Caucus unanimously agreed upon the names to honor in our resolution. It is beyond disappointing and offensive that Wisconsin Republicans are choosing not to respect the leadership of Wisconsin’s Legislative Black Caucus on this issue,” Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison) said. State Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) criticized her Republican colleagues for telling “the entire country” that a “white Republican legislator” is “best suited to decide for African Americans what we should value, who we should honor.” “You don’t have to understand. It’s not your lens. It’s not your story. It’s ours. Who are you to…

Read the full story