No new teachers sign the pledge the week before. It now has six pledges from Manchester teachers by the end of the week ending Oct. 30.
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 |
|---|---|
| Meredith Walker | Truth is important. All cultures and perspectives need to be represented and people need to know all parts of history not the just good parts. |
| Sean Russell | We have a moral obligation to tell the WHOLE story. |
| Candace Moulton | “no comment” |
| Gregory Giorgio | We, the undersigned educators, refuse to lie to young people about U.S. history and current events — regardless of the law. |
| Joanna Preucel | Accuracy in teaching our history matters in understanding of the very real issues of today |
| Landis Brown | As a new teacher committed to teaching social justice, I will not whitewash the atrocities of our past to appease those unwilling to recognize that our country was built on the genocide of Native Americans and on the labor of racial slavery. |
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