The pledge was signed by no teachers on Feb. 21, the day before. It now has two pledges from Corpus Christi 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 Corpus Christi teachers included, "Corpus Christi, Texas, is the birthplace of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement. The League of United Latin American Citizens and the American GI Forum were founded here, and our families take great pride in our history. The Texas Legislature was proposing the elimination of this history in our classrooms. As a matter of pride and as a matter of our local history, it would have meant the disenfranchisement of our entire community from our history books. This was unacceptable. After strong local opposition, the legislature eliminated this provision from consideration this week" and "I believe that the future generation of this country should be fully aware of the events that happened, and give us a reason why our political climate is the way it is and allow us to form how it should be, and shun ignorance".
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 |
|---|---|
| Keila Ramirez | I believe that the future generation of this country should be fully aware of the events that happened, and give us a reason why our political climate is the way it is and allow us to form how it should be, and shun ignorance. |
| Nancy Vera | Corpus Christi, Texas, is the birthplace of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement. The League of United Latin American Citizens and the American GI Forum were founded here, and our families take great pride in our history. The Texas Legislature was proposing the elimination of this history in our classrooms. As a matter of pride and as a matter of our local history, it would have meant the disenfranchisement of our entire community from our history books. This was unacceptable. After strong local opposition, the legislature eliminated this provision from consideration this week. |
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