Hello. Write your message here. Link text here

Arrow up
Arrow down

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." - Nelson Mandela

TFRW: Add Radical Civics Protest Education To Critical Race Theory Bill

By Carole Hornsby Haynes   July 2, 2021

Though Texas Republicans are crowing about their accomplishment in passing HB 3979 to ban Critical Race Theory, their handiwork is far worse than having no bill at all.

The Republican-controlled legislature failed to pass most of the Republican legislative priorities, yet with the national light shining on them, they passed a bill that will have incredibly devastating effects on the attitudes and beliefs of students. Then they lied to us about its merits.

The bill prohibits teaching both Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project, the New York Times “fake history” that claims America was founded on slavery. Yet the final text is riddled with Democrat amendments that actually push Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project into the curriculum.

The bill bans CRT only in social studies classes -- no other classes or entities – and has no enforcement mechanism. Schools are prohibited from accepting private funding for the development of a curriculum, purchasing curriculum materials, and providing teacher training and professional development. This is to prevent private funding of “action civics” programs akin to that in Illinois where schools accept funding from the far left Robert R. McCormick Foundation to create their curricular materials for an action civics course and teaching training seminars.

The 2015 Illinois civics law is a Chicago-based application of Alinsky-style community organizing to school children. Stanley Kurtz at National Review explains that “action civics is just as dangerous as Critical Race Theory, and in fact is directly allied with it.”

“Texas is target number one in the Left’s play to turn the red states blue with a radicalized version of “civics.” What is variously called “action civics,” “civic engagement,” or “project-based civics,” requires K-12 students to engage in political protests, lobbying, and internships with advocacy organizations, all for course credit. The protests and lobbying are virtually always for causes on the left. In any case, it is totally inappropriate for schools to require extracurricular political activity, particularly when it subjects impressionable school children to teacher biases and peer pressure, as “action civics” invariably does.”

Since Governor Abbott already has signed the bill, why has he included it in the Special Legislative Session beginning July 8?

It seems the Texas Federation of Republican Women (TFRW) wanted Abbott to veto the bill because it prohibited action civics and now is pressuring him to add the program.

TFRW is joined at the hip with iCivics, a leftist civics activism curriculum, which has deep pocket left wing donors such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, who want students engaged in leftwing advocacy.

According to a study by the Association of Mature American Citizens, the conservative counterpart to the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), iCivics’ staff members “have donated exclusively to Democrat politicians or Democrat political action committees over the past eight major election cycles since iCivics was founded.”

The Golden Hammer spoke with Glynis Chester, President of TFRW, who explained why the GOP state organization is so unhappy with HB 3979:

1.The prohibition of CRT is limited to “required social studies curriculum”. Which means that it is permissible in elementary, middle, and high school in any other course ie. Language arts.

2.The private funding prohibition is also limited and can still be accepted for developing CRT curriculum.

3.Some of the documents added under the “knowledge” section of (h-2) actually provide a backdoor for CRT to be discussed in any classroom.

4.Section (h-3)(3) prohibits students from receiving class credit needed for graduation for volunteer work (community service hours) for charitable entities, because almost any charitable enterprise (food bank, community garden, clothing drive, church work, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts) can be considered “social or public policy advocacy” which is prohibited.

TFRW gave the Senate the exact language they wanted inserted into the bill and, to its credit, the Senate did not respond.

Will TFRW’s demands to include the radical program of action civics be met in this special session?

Question: Why are Republican Women’s Clubs paying dues to and engaging with this left wing GOP organization?

 

joomla visitor