Tag: critical race theory

Inside Story on How the 1776 Commission Refused to be Canceled by Biden

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Joe Biden in the office

Despite being abolished by the Biden administration, the 1776 Commission established by President Trump to develop a patriotic education curriculum lives on.

The commission’s executive director, Matthew Spalding, told Just the News that the panel is staying operational despite losing its federal charter and shifting its focus to state and local education. A Web site and new social media presence are forthcoming.

“You can abolish a commission, you can take a report off the website, but you can’t erase history,” Spalding told the John Solomon Reports podcast in an episode that aired Wednesday.

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DeSantis Press Secretary: Governor Has ‘Earned’ National Spotlight

Peter D'Abrosca
Ron DeSantis

In response to an Associated Press story that describes Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) as “seizing” the national spotlight, his Press Secretary Christina Pushaw told the Florida Capital Star that the governor has earned his newfound respect among Republicans nationwide. 

“Governor DeSantis has earned the national stage by demonstrating real leadership. For elected officials facing a crisis like COVID-19, it’s tempting to abdicate decision-making power to unelected bureaucrats in public health,” Pushaw said. “Governor DeSantis did the opposite. He sought out expertise from health professionals and scientists, he did his own research, and most importantly, he made decisions that were harshly criticized sometimes, but more than a year on, the data has proven that his approach was the right one.”

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Georgia Board of Education Formally Opposes Critical Race Theory

Chris Butler
Classroom of students.

Members of the Georgia Board of Education voted Thursday to formally oppose teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the state’s K-12 classrooms. Board members, according to their resolution, described beliefs such as CRT as “concepts that impute fault, blame, a tendency to oppress others, or the need to feel guilt or anguish to persons solely because of their race or sex.”

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Commentary: Critical Race Theory Has Radically Transformed America’s Corporations and Public Schools

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People in the streets protesting

Just four weeks ago, I wrote about the rising resistance to the woke craze and critical race theory, and much has transpired since then.

Here in California, even Disneyland has not been spared the wrath of the crazies. On May 7, the incomparable Christopher Rufo reported that “The Wokest Place on Earth” now includes employee trainings on systemic racism, white privilege, white fragility, and white saviors, and also launched racially segregated “affinity groups” at the company’s headquarters.

But just five days later, Rufo disclosed that Disney “has removed its entire antiracism program from the company’s internal portal, effectively scrubbing it out of existence.” Rufo added, “This is a major victory in the war against ‘woke capital,’” and noted that a “significant backlash from the public” was responsible for the shift. While some skeptics suggested that the policy was being “tweaked or rebranded, not scrubbed,” Rufo responded, “Possibly, but small victories start to add up. We’ve set the precedent—and forced a $329 billion company to back down.”

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Trump Criticizes Ducey for Veto of Critical Race Theory and Election Security Bills

Cooper Moran

Former President Donald Trump slammed Arizona Governor Doug Ducey on Wednesday for vetoing bills that would have outlawed Critical Race Theory (CRT) training for state employees and another that would prevent mailing ballots to individuals who did not request them. 

“Incredible to see that RINO Governor Doug Ducey of Arizona just vetoed a bill that would have outlawed Critical Race Theory training for State employees, and another that would have banned the mailing of ballots to citizens who never requested them,” Trump said in his statement. 

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Minneapolis Asking City Employees Including Police Officers to Sign Letter in Support of Critical Race Theory

Hayley Feland

An email from the city of Minneapolis, written to all city employees, reveals that the employees are being asked to sign a letter acknowledging the “devastating intergenerational harms of systemic racism and racial injustice.” 

The letter was read to the public during the May 28, 2021 Minneapolis City Council meeting, by Daniel La Croix, with Minneapolis Regulatory Services. 

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Montana Attorney General Bans Critical Race Theory

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"End Racism Now" sign and "Black Lives Matter" in a crowd

The highest-ranking prosecutor in the state of Montana has declared Critical Race Theory to be a violation of state and federal law, and has banned the far-left theory in Montana’s schools, as reported by ABC News.

Attorney General Austin Knudsen (R-Mont.) made his announcement on Thursday, after he was asked for his opinion by the state’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Erise Arntzen (R-Mont.). His declaration bans the concept not only from Montana’s schools, but from employee training as well.

The far-left American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) released a statement criticizing Knudsen’s decision, falsely accusing him of attempting to “impose an alternate version of American history – one that erases the legacy of discrimination and lived experiences of black and brown people.”

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Commentary: Concerns Grow About Critical Race Theory and Fostering Healthy Solutions in Williamson County Schools

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Protestor with megaphone, talking

Critical Race Theory and its potential impact on students, and the broader community, has many parents worried in Williamson County. These worries have grown ever since Fostering Healthy Solutions (FHS) was hired – by unanimous vote by the WCS school board – to do an audit of the WCS system. FHS is Shan Foster’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion consultancy, which he co-founded with his mother, Anita Foster, in 2017. FHS was brought in to address charges of bullying and claims of incidents of racism in the WCS. The WCS School Board has paid FHS $55,000 over 4 months to help the district “provide a safe learning environment for all students by creating a cultural strategy plan”, according to an April 28 article in the Brentwood HomePage.

Fueling WCS parents’ concerns about FHS, are controversies regarding Critical Race Theory that are erupting in other school districts nationwide. The concern being, that firms like FHS are enacting programs in the name of “Diversity”, “Equity” and “Inclusion”, but hiding behind those nice-sounding terms is a bevy of lesser known CRT-based ideas. For example, concepts such as “white privilege”, “anti-racism” and “systemic racism”, as well as a “oppressor/oppressed” framework for understanding America. Oppressor/Oppressed narratives are rooted in Neo-Marxist philosophies and are usually presented as fact to faculty and students via DEI programs, rather than academic theory.

The Tennessee Legislature just banned the teaching of CRT in schools – with Governor Bill Lee signing HB 0580/SB 0623 – which penalizes funding to any school system that teaches CRT concepts. Still, the question many Williamson County parents have is, does CRT inform the worldview of the FHS’s founders?  And does FHS intend to use CRT concepts and ideas to guide discussions about DEI should their contract be renewed in July?

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Commentary: No Schools are Safe from Critical Race Theory – Even in Williamson County

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Downtown Franklin, Tennessee

Williamson County? Never heard of it. What’s the big deal?

Well, a lot.

Williamson County, Tennessee is what you might call “Republican Heaven.” Just south of Democrat-stronghold Nashville, much of it is a gorgeous suburb, home to the likes of country star Luke Bryan of “American Idol” fame – on an 150 acre estate – and Senator Marsha Blackburn.

Its county seat, Franklin, has a downtown straight out of an updated version of Norman Rockwell, the kind of place you can get both great barbecue and haute cuisine.

That small city and county are growing like crazy in large part because they are also supposed to have one of the best public school systems in the country.

Supposed to…

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Nikki Fried Backs Critical Race Theory in Florida Classrooms

Grant Holcomb

Days before her likely official gubernatorial launch, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried announced her support for teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) in Florida’s schools and classrooms.

Fried is making a major announcement on June 1, which most are speculating is a governor’s race campaign launch, and in preparation for statewide attention, attended a local community meeting on Tuesday night where she criticized Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for saying CRT is “divisive” and should not be taught in public schools.

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11 States Consider Bans on Teaching Critical Race Theory

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Student raising hand in class

Earlier this year, an Aiken County teacher wrote to South Carolina state Rep. Bill Taylor in alarm about critical race theory emerging in public schools. 

“I know full well the insidiousness of the so-called critical race theory that aims to resegregate society, discriminate against those who are white, victimize those who are black, and render America a nation of identity groups rather than Americans,” the teacher wrote. 

Hardly a day goes by, Taylor said, that he doesn’t hear from a constituent on the issue. 

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Carol Swain Commentary: Critical Race Theory Is a Cancer on Our Educational System

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Critical race theory is the civil rights issue of our time. It eats away at our public, private, and Christian academies with its cancerous messages about white privilege, minority disadvantage, and perennial racism. Hardly a day goes by that I do not hear from parents and teachers about yet another school system where the cancerous roots of critical race theory have taken hold or begun to appear under the guise of “culturally competent teaching and learning” or “educational equity.” No matter what they call it, they cannot hide its poisonous effects. 

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Parents Protest Implementation of Critical Race Theory at School Board Meeting

Hayley Feland

100 parents were reportedly in attendance at a school board meeting in Lakeville, Minnesota on Tuesday to speak out against Critical Race Theory being implemented.

Two concerned parents spoke at the meeting and protested the “indoctrination” of Critical Race Theory and said that Critical Race Theory is opposed to their Christian faith. The couple, Jim and Keisha, said that they were there to speak for the “millions of black Americans who disagree with the Black Lives Matter movement.” 

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Gov. Bill Lee Signs Bill Banning Critical Race Theory Teachings

Cooper Moran

Tennessee joined several other states on Monday in banning the teachings of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public schools throughout the state. 

The legislation, a section of a larger education bill, prohibits the teaching that “an individual, by virtue of the individual’s race or sex, is inherently privileged, racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or subconsciously” according to the bill. 

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Utah Legislature Passes Resolution to Ban Critical Race Theory from Schools

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House Speaker Brad Wilson

Republicans in Utah’s state legislature passed a resolution on Wednesday to instruct the state’s schools to ban Critical Race Theory from their curriculum, as reported by Breitbart.

During the vote in the Utah House of Representatives, every single Democrat walked off the floor in protest of the bill, thus allowing the legislation to pass with only Republican votes. The “House Resolution on Critical Race Theory in Public Education” was subsequently passed by the Utah Senate. Because the measure is a resolution rather than a bill, it did not need the signature of Governor Spencer Cox (R-Utah) in order to pass.

House Speaker Brad Wilson (R-Utah) said that with the resolution, the state legislature was “calling on the state school board to look at the curriculum and determine what the right parameters for this discussion to happen.”

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Professors, Parents Sound off on Proposal to Prioritize Critical Race Theory

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Town hall meeting

The Biden administration invited the public to comment on its plan to place a priority on plications for a civics and history grant that incorporates Critical Race Theory in April. Americans had much to say about the polarizing proposal, which yielded more than 16,800 comments over a 30-day period.

In addition to comments made online, 22 parent and teacher groups signed on to a coalition letter to Secretary Cardona that says teaching Critical Race Theory may violate the rights of students to pursue an education without discrimination. The group, led by Parents Defending Education, writes that the proposal “creates the very real possibility that under the auspices of this grant program, discrimination will be introduced into classrooms across the country.”

Nicole Neily, founder and president of Parents Defending Education, told Campus Reform that the letter is a result of volunteers who are “the tip of the spear, out there, on the front lines, going to their school board meetings. These are all groups that have sprung up to address political indoctrination in schools.”

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Memphis City Council Adopts Resolution Opposing State Ban on Critical Race Theory

Corinne Murdock
Memphis City Council Meeting

On Tuesday, the Memphis City Council adopted a resolution opposing the state legislature’s ban on critical race theory.

The item was added last-minute to the council agenda. Council members Martavius Jones, Michalyn Easter-Thomas, JB Smiley, Cheyenne Johnson, Rhonda Logan, Jeff Warren, Ford Canale, Frank Colvett, Edmund Ford, and Chase Carlisle sponsored the resolution. The council voted unanimously in favor of the resolution without discussion.

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DeSantis Vows More Action Against Critical Race Theory

Peter D'Abrosca

After a teacher in Duval County was fired for violating the ban on Critical Race Theory in the classroom, Florida’s governor has promised even more action against the practice.

“If we have to play whack a mole all over the state stopping this critical race theory, we will do it,” DeSantis said in a Friday press conference. “You can put lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.”

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Brian Kemp Warns Georgia About Critical Race Theory, but Vernon Jones Says He Has a Plan to Get Rid of It Altogether

Chris Butler

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp this week submitted a letter to members of the state board of education and warned about the dangers of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public schools. But Vernon Jones — Kemp’s declared Republican opponent for next year’s gubernatorial race — also denounced CRT and said, if elected, he’ll do more than just warn about it.

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Florida Teacher Fired for Violating DeSantis Critical Race Theory Ban

Cooper Moran

A Florida teacher was fired for refusing to remove a Black Lives Matter banner from outside her classroom, a direct violation of the Critical Race Theory (CRT) teaching ban implemented by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year.

“Governor DeSantis has made clear his position on CRT. It is divisive, irrational, and has no place in our classrooms. CRT is rooted in Marxism, an anti-American ideology that has caused untold suffering and death everywhere it has been implemented. Moreover, CRT teaches discrimination based on ethnicity and racial background,” Executive Office of the Governor Press Secretary Christina Pushaw told The Epoch Times.

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Florida Board of Education Proposes Anti-Indoctrination Rule for Public Schools

Casey Owens
Classroom full of kids, that are being read a book

The Florida State Board of Education will soon make a decision on an anti-indoctrination rule that will change the way U.S. History is taught in public schools.

The rule aims to establish strict guidelines for U.S. History that will try to eliminate students being indoctrinated by teachers by taking subjectivity out of the curriculum and focusing on facts that do not distort significant historical events.

Under the proposed rule, discussions held within the classroom must be considered appropriate for the different age and maturity levels of students that aligns with their specific grade level. During classroom discussion, teachers are prohibited from sharing their personal opinions and will be encouraged to let students develop their own perspective without influence or persuasion from the teacher’s point of view.

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Commentary: Biden Admin Pushes Critical Race Theory in Public Schools

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First Lady Jill Biden

When President Biden signed an executive order on Inauguration Day calling for “an ambitious whole-of-government equity agenda,” he signaled that his administration would embrace the education agenda of the race-obsessed world of radical “social justice” politics. We now see further evidence of the president’s intentions in the Department of Education’s proposal to funnel grants to schools that teach critical race theory. This pernicious theory analyzes every aspect of American society and history through the belief that racism has been, and remains, central to American life, all while peddling revolutionary Marxist philosophy.

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CRITICAL RACE THEORY: Expert Warns Williamson County School System Officials Behave Like ‘Equal Guardian of the Child’

Chris Butler

FRANKLIN — Williamson County School System officials deny they push Critical Race Theory (CRT), but a Republican congressional candidate who wants to replace U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN-05) said the school system is headed in that direction. And that man, Robby Starbuck, told The Tennessee Star Wednesday that Williamson County currently follows the pattern he witnessed in California.

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Students at Christian University Call on School to Turn Away from ‘Falsehood’ That Is Critical Race Theory

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University of Northwestern - St. Paul

Two students for the University of Northwestern – St. Paul have launched a petition calling on the school to turn away from Critical Race Theory and other progressive ideologies, arguing that such theories run counter to the school’s Christian foundation.

Students at Northwestern St. Paul University Hayley Tschetter and Joshua Feland created a change.org petition warning the community about “destructive” concepts that are becoming commonplace in higher-education.

“Intentional or not, exchanging the biblical worldview and faithful Christian teaching for those worldviews rooted in anti-biblical ideologies such as Marxism, Postmodernism, Social Justice Theory, Critical Race Theory, and Intersectionality leads down a destructive one-way road from which you cannot return.”

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Commentary: Beware of Academics Offering ‘Expertise’ on Systemic Racism, Equity

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Person walking through library aisle

If it’s been said once, it’s been said many times: The academic language surrounding “equity,” “systemic racism” and the like is always ambiguous, vacuous and flowery.

This is on purpose, mind you. Because when challenged, so-called experts can define the terms as they wish. The words are ever-malleable.

In a recent Education Week piece, the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Jennifer Cheatham and John Diamond of the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education offer tips to help determine whether a school district’s “way of decisionmaking” serves to maintain systemic racism.

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Major School District in Virginia Eyes ‘Anti-Racism’ Instead of Questioning Assumptions

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Students dancing in classroom

Parents in one of the nation’s largest school districts are being asked about how schools should teach their children about systemic racism, “multiple identities,” and ways to “challenge power and privilege.”

Virginia’s Fairfax County Public Schools sent a survey Thursday to parents and teachers seeking input about the school system’s future “anti-racism” and “anti-bias” policy. 

“One key strategy to achieve educational equity is to analyze and address the beliefs and policies that inform teaching practices along with what is taught in schools,” Schools Superintendent Scott S. Brabrand said in an email message introducing the survey to parents and teachers. 

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Disney Pushes ‘Critical Race Theory’ in Employee Training Materials

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Walt Disney Cinderella's castle

A new report claims the Walt Disney Company is pushing “critical race theory” on its employees as part of an internal training program, teaching them “race consciousness” and other concepts to address “systemic racism” in the U.S.

Manhattan Institute fellow Christopher Rufo on Friday published what he says are a “trove of whistleblower documents” detailing a program titled “Reimagine Tomorrow.”

Rudo also provides in his report what he says are primary-source documents that appear to be pages of a training manual.

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West Point Probed for Allegations It’s Pushing Critical Race Theory on Cadets

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West Point Military Academy

A U.S. congressman is seeking transparency from West Point Military Academy after hearing complaints regarding elements of critical race theory present in its training curriculum.

Rep. Mike Waltz, a member of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to West Point leaders requesting copies of teaching materials provided at West Point after receiving complaints from various families and cadets.

In a phone interview with The College Fix, the Florida Republican explained that many families of West Point cadets come from military or law enforcement backgrounds, saying “they found it incredibly divisive.”

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Tennessee U.S. Rep. Mark Green Introduces Bill to Block Critical Race Theory Training in U.S. Military Service Academies

Chris Butler

U.S. Rep. Mark Green (R-TN-07) announced Wednesday that he has introduced a bill that would, if enacted into law, fight back against Critical Race Theory (CRT) training in U.S. Military Service Academies. “Critical Race Theory is based on a massive and purposeful misunderstanding of the American founding, American history, and America as it exists today. This is a Marxist ideology created to tear American institutions down,” Green said in a press release.

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States, Political Parties Draw Battle Lines over Taxpayer Funding of Critical Race Theory

The Center Square

A grassroots group of conservatives and Republican state leaders is pushing back after the Biden administration tied federal education funding to adopting controversial critical race theory teachings in schools’ curriculum.

The Biden administration in April proposed a new Department of Education rule that gives preference in grant awarding to schools that incorporate into their curriculum content from the “1619 Project,” a controversial history project that is the most prominent work containing critical race theory ideas.

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Tennessee General Assembly Passes Bill Banning Critical Race Theory Tenets in K-12 Schools

Corinne Murdock
Classroom of students.

The Tennessee General Assembly passed a bill effectively banning critical race theory (CRT) from K-12 education. The legislature had to create a conference committee on Wednesday to resolve the legislature’s conflict on amending language effectively banning CRT in schools. That conference committee not only approved the ban – they added onto the ban. In addition to the original language of the bill outlining and banning 14 tenets of CRT, The Tennessee Star was informed by State Senator Jack Johnson (R-Franklin) that the conference committee report added on three tenets. In effect, these tenets further defined the prohibited conclusions typically advanced by CRT.

“(12) The rule of law does not exist, but instead is a series of power relationships and struggles among racial or other groups; (13) All Americans are not created equal and are not endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; or (14) Governments should deny to any person with the government’s jurisdiction the equal protection of the law[,]” read the added provisions.

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Williamson County School System in Tennessee Won’t Comment on Texas Cultural Competency Plan That Preaches All Whites Are Racist

Chris Butler

Officials at one public school system in Texas use a cultural competency plan that teaches that all whites are racist, and it was unclear Tuesday if those ideas have made their way to Tennessee. Officials at the Williamson County School System in Tennessee wouldn’t say Tuesday if their own cultural competency plan mirrors the one that teachers use in Texas’ Southlake Carroll Independent School District. The Federalist describes the Texas curriculum in a report this week.

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Tennessee House Passes Bill Banning Critical Race Theory from K-12 Schools

Corinne Murdock

On Tuesday, the Tennessee House passed a bill effectively banning critical race theory (CRT) in K-12 schools. The bill doesn’t mention CRT explicitly, but it does prohibits CRT’s main tenets – such as the belief that America is fundamentally and systemically racist, and that an individual can be inherently privileged, racist, sexist, or oppressive based on their race or sex. The amended version of the bill will now head to the Senate for review. During the third and final hearing before the House, State Representative John Ragan (R-Oak Ridge) gave a lengthy speech expounding on the fundamental founding principles of our country.

“[I]t is time that we support educating our children in fixing what is wrong with America with what is right with America,” said Ragan. “We must create an educational climate where every student is an individual, not just part of some group. Moreover, that educational climate must teach students that they can realize their own unique dreams through hard work and meritorious achievement.”

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