“What critical race theory teaches, even though it's not being taught in primary schools, isn't that radical,” said Eric Ward, a senior fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center. ‘Children deserve to be taught’: Teachers in 22 cities are planning protests over laws restricting racism lessons in schools ‘Perfect storm of timing and misinformation’Ĭritical race theory is not being taught in most schools across America. It’s a decades-old legal framework for examining laws that reproduce inequalities in society.Ĭommon misinformation about the theory ties it to Marxism, and some opponents claim it teaches white children to hate themselves. And I think we've reached a crescendo because I think people are just tired,” said Anna Maria Chávez, executive director and CEO of the National School Boards Association. “This has been building up over this past year and a half. Board members, used to sleepy and ill-attended public meetings, are reeling.Ī meeting room was cleared in Michigan. Shouting matches broke out in Kentucky. In Virginia, sheriff's deputies arrested and cited someone after a school board voted to end its unruly meeting. School board members in New Hampshire were compared to Nazis. A father in New York rushed to the stage to confront a board member. The pitched battles, over issues ranging from racism to masks to the rights of transgender students, have often caught district leaders flatfooted. Fears about critical race theory, stoked in national media and fanned by conservative think tanks and activists, have heightened tensions with schools even more. Anger is boiling over after a year and a half of virtual learning and strict COVID-19 rules in schools. In recent weeks, protests, arrests and appearances by national activists have become the norm at school board meetings across the country. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk said the board was “stomping on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr." And, outside, the chair of the right-wing Patriot Party of Arizona, Steve Daniels, was arrested. In the following hour, an attendee said he saw no distinction between critical race theory and equity trainings. In fact, critical race theory wasn’t being taught in Chandler’s schools, and neither the board nor administration had discussed the possibility of implementing it into the curriculum, said Mozdzen, the board president. While many attendees indicated they were at the meeting to discuss “critical race theory,” the topic was not actually on the agenda that day. When Barb Mozdzen opened last month's school board meeting in Chandler, Arizona, for public comment, she had a caveat. They added that they had been mocked at previous meetings for wearing a dress while arguing that the dress code should be changed.Watch Video: Why critical race theory is becoming controversial The student told The Bee that officials had spoken to them to “make sure I was safe, which helped a lot since I did not feel comfortable after giving my speech”. She added that she reached to Zwebti to thank them for sharing “an opinion that knew was counter to others who have spoken at prior board meetings”. “In Clovis Unified, we have always been committed to creating an environment where everyone feels able to share their opinions, to be heard, and to do so without fear of bullying behaviour by members of the public attending our meetings.” “Members of my administration, along with our onsite police officers, immediately stepped in last night to make sure our student knew that our team was present to protect and support ,” she said. Ms O’Brien told The Bee that what Zwebti faced was “disturbing and utterly unacceptable”. “I think this is a prime example, we need to teach the constitution more in schools,” one parent said to cheers from members of the community.
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