The pledge was signed by three teachers the month before. It now has three pledges from Jackson teachers by June.
They are 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. Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, New Hampshire, Florida, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee have passed legislation banning discussions about the US being inherently racist.
Other states, such as Montana and Georgia, have denounced the teachings and are discussing a ban on critical race theory teachings.
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 |
|---|---|
| Katie Freeliegh | I am a parent and I will teach my children about real honesty and real critical thinking. When they get taught about the slave trade I will help them explore the centuries of the African slave trade before America was even discovered. We will explore who from what tribe was selling who from what other tribe. We will look at the economics and how slavery was not actually outlawed in Africa until the 1920s. We’ll look at how many people in America owned slaves and if underprivileged whites were also treated as slaves. We’ll look at how most of the transatlantic slaves went to South America, Mexico and the islands. We’ll talk about how slavery was ended in the US by White people and the substantial human and financial expense of that and how it had a ripple effect through the world. If white atrocities are studied say against Chinese building railroads, I will expose them to Chinese atrocities in ancient and modern times. I will do the same for stories against blacks, browns and natives. Clearly illustrating that human atrocities are a human condition not a white one. I will look at Critical Race Theory critically and point out its flaws in logic and fact. I will point out that white people have a lived experience also and any color lived experience does not cancel that out, they are equal. I will point out that white majority in US is just as ok as Hispanic culture majority in Mexico, Chinese culture majority in China and black culture majority in Africa etc. This is all truth, regardless of its inconvenience to any agenda. |
| Rob Campbell | ...it is my job to teach the truth to my students. I promise them at the beginning of every school year that the one thing I will never do is lie to them. We cannot learn from our past if we don't know what it really is. The truth about America's history is long overdue to be told. |
| Karen Jenks | “no comment” |
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