The pledge was signed by no teachers on April 20, the day before. It now has 10 pledges from Ithaca teachers.
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.
Comments from Ithaca teachers included, "Teaching the truth of the history of this country which was founded on a system of enslavement and systemic racism is the only way to work towards the creation of true democracy and racial justice. We have to own the past to heal, learn from it and move forwards to do better" and "I will not allow history to be white washed!".
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 |
|---|---|
| Amber Ward | Children deserve to know ALL of American history. American history is more than white saviors, white ideas, and white ideologies. By learning black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and Asian American history in his entirety will show our children that all people in this country have made impacts and have bettered us to this day. |
| Caitlin Moss | No comment |
| Caitlin Moss | I will not allow history to be white washed! |
| Colleen Keifer | Truth matters.History matters.Equality and equity matter.Black Lives Matter. |
| Grant Gilbreath | No comment |
| Jim Hodges | Middle School students are poised in their development to take their youthful concrete thinking toward more discerning, analytical abstraction. I'm committed to supporting their growth by providing them a wide range of information, media and the critical thinking tools to make sense of their historical moment and see themselves as active agents in the world. A few years away from their right to vote, we need to have them step into their democratic roles, knowledgeable about the nation's history and workings of government, and the habits of mind to be able to question, research, dig and gather to understand fact from fiction. |
| Karen McCaffery | Teaching the truth of the history of this country which was founded on a system of enslavement and systemic racism is the only way to work towards the creation of true democracy and racial justice. We have to own the past to heal, learn from it and move forwards to do better. |
| Michael Margolin | No comment |
| Mimi Goldman | No comment |
| Sara Shenk | No comment |
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