The pledge was signed by two teachers the week before. It now has nine pledges from Boulder teachers by the end of the week ending Aug. 21.
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.
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 |
|---|---|
| Caitlin Kline | “no comment” |
| Mandi Leigh | White children need to know the authentic history of the United States. |
| Karen Halverson | They can handle the truth! |
| Barry Sparks | Students are entitled to the truth and educators are obliged to tell it. |
| Kelly Molinet | White supremacy must be dismantled. |
| Heather Carr | I will NEVER lie to my students. Education is power and I will fight until I’m dead those trying to steal knowledge and power from my students. Educators kill fascism. |
| Victoria Hand | I feel that my country lied to me when they did not disclose the true nature of our history. The history books reflected only progress and power, without describing how we became power through slavery and other colonial acts. The men we regard as heroes in our history books are often the ones who brought about the most destruction and pain to others. We owe our children the truth. |
| Deborah Palmer | I became a teacher so I could support students to become leaders, to take stands and make our world better for everyone. I must trust my students with the truth - I have no choice, they need the tools of truth to lead the world of tomorrow. |
| Jeanette Scotti Millar | I believe in truth telling. It's important for students to learn how to be critical thinkers about past and current events and how to work collectively towards finding solutions for societal problems. |
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