On Tuesday’s Gill Report – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 1510 WLAC weekdays at 7:30 am – Star News Digital Media National Political Editor Steve Gill discussed the peculiar fascination with the Texas’s Board of Education and their obsession with editing their state’s social studies curriculum. He went on to reflect on The Tennessee Star’s last story regarding the Alamo and the most recent attempt of taking out Hillary Clinton and Helen Keller from the state’s history books.
Gill continued:
What the heck is going on in Texas? Now we had a story a week or so ago about the state of Texas Board of Education deciding whether or not to remove the word ‘heroic’ in describing the defenders at the Alamo. They ultimately decided after they got some national push back that the description of the defenders of the Alamo as heroic was appropriate, so they’re leaving that in the social studies curriculum.
And now the Texas Board of Education has voted to remove former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton from the state’s social studies curriculum. They’ve also dropped Helen Keller. Now it came after the fifteen-member board nominated volunteer work group created a scale to grade historical figures. Trying to decide who’s essential to learn about and who isn’t essential to learn about. And well Helen Keller and Hillary Clinton didn’t make the grade.
On a twenty-point scale Hillary Clinton scored a five. They must have been grading on a curve. (Gill chuckles) Helen Keller earned a seven. I’m glad to know that Helen Keller actually pointed above Hillary Clinton. Now Hillary Clinton was of course also the nominee for the Democrats for President of the United States. Maybe she would have ranked higher if she’d won but she lost. So, she won’t even be taught in Texas schools as part of their social studies curriculum. Keller who was blind and deaf and was known for her political activism among other accomplishments has been a figure of great historical importance if only because she overcame the most dyer and difficult disabilities to be a leader.
So, again they probably should have kept Helen Keller, I have no problem with them dropping Hillary Clinton, I’m glad heroic is back in the definition of the defenders of the Alamo.
But the state of Texas is also considering something else. And that is to require that students be taught that the Arabs, that the Palestinians are to blame for all the problems in the Middle East between the Israelis’ and the Palestinians’ that its all their fault. Now look, I don’t think we ought to be picking sides in that issue, there is plenty of blame to go around.
Including the fact that the British after World War II drew the lines of where different countries were in that region regardless of the tribes, regardless of the geography, regardless of who lived where, they just put the lines where the British wanted the lines. So I’m not sure that social studies teachers in Texas are the one’s to really put the burden of teaching middle east history without giving a little more guidance than just blame one side.
But that’s just me.
Listen to the full segment:
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