The pledge was signed by no teachers on Feb. 14, the day before. It now has seven pledges from Oak Park 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 Oak Park teachers included, "the history and continued existence of systemic racism needs to be discussed and dissected in the classroom and beyond" and "The true history of the United States must be available/ shared/ taught".
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 |
|---|---|
| Angela Hawkins | No comment |
| Christian Kadlec | No comment |
| Courtney Tarbox | No comment |
| Heidi Bisson | The true history of the United States must be available/ shared/ taught. |
| Selena Garcia | No comment |
| William Boyer | the history and continued existence of systemic racism needs to be discussed and dissected in the classroom and beyond. |
| Zoe Schirmer | Teaching truth matters! |
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