Friday, March 12, 2010

Texas State Board of Education Approves Right Wing Agenda To be Put In Textbooks

From The Huffington Post:
A far-right faction of the Texas State Board of Education succeeded Friday in injecting conservative ideals into social studies, history and economics lessons that will be taught to millions of students for the next decade.
Teachers in Texas will be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation's Founding Fathers, but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state. Curriculum standards also will describe the U.S. government as a "constitutional republic," rather than "democratic," and students will be required to study the decline in value of the U.S. dollar, including the abandonment of the gold standard.
"We have been about conservatism versus liberalism," said Democrat Mavis Knight of Dallas, explaining her vote against the standards. "We have manipulated strands to insert what we want it to be in the document, regardless as to whether or not it's appropriate."

Following three days of impassioned and acrimonious debate, the board gave preliminary approval to the new standards with a 10-5 party line vote. A final vote is expected in May, after a public comment period that could produce additional amendments and arguments.

Decisions by the board – made up of lawyers, a dentist and a weekly newspaper publisher among others – can affect textbook content nationwide because Texas is one of publishers' biggest clients.

Ultraconservatives wielded their power over hundreds of subjects this week, introducing and rejecting amendments on everything from the civil rights movement to global politics. Hostilities flared and prompted a walkout Thursday by one of the board's most prominent Democrats, Mary Helen Berlanga of Corpus Christi, who accused her colleagues of "whitewashing" curriculum standards.

By late Thursday night, three other Democrats seemed to sense their futility and left, leaving Republicans to easily push through amendments heralding "American exceptionalism" and the U.S. free enterprise system, suggesting it thrives best absent excessive government intervention.

"Some board members themselves acknowledged this morning that the process for revising curriculum standards in Texas is seriously broken, with politics and personal agendas dominating just about every decision," said Kathy Miller, president of the Texas Freedom Network, which advocates for religious freedom.
Conservatives are trying to play a dangerous political game with the education system, by determining the content to be allowed in textbooks of Texas, and essentially the nation. Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, had made the statement warning against infusing politics into the textbooks, stating that once the curriculum is established," it will affect a generation of students - how they think." What is more troubling is the Texan's infusion of religion in to history, with Gilbert T. Sewall, Director of the American Textbook Council, stating that the Christian right is trying to recapture the "soul" of the nation, with Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State saying that the Christian right is trying to "convince Americans that this was founded as a Christian nation," chiseling away at the separation of church and state. Lynn points out that the deeply flawed system in Texas has unqualified elected people making decisions for the entire nation.

7 comments:

  1. It's so disgusting. At what point do you look at your efforts to indoctrinate your childeren into your warped ideology and come to the realization that's it's just easier to admit you're wrong? The church doesn't go to these lengths.

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  2. Kevin, I'm glad to see so many covering this. I did back before that passed it. At the rate they're going they'll open the school day singing, All hail the power of Reagans name...

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  3. I had been following the story for some time and had hoped that the national coverage would prove to be an indicator to those on the Texas board to not proceed with their conservative social agenda, and by their own definitions - indoctrination...

    Apparently, it is okay for the right to indoctrinate, but when it comes to educating anything deemed "progressive," it is wrong. This is partly why I have become so disillusioned with the GOP and the modern conservative movement.

    When Eric Massa was on Glenn Beck, he had told Beck that it is possible to be progressive and conservative at the same time. While Beck shook his head, I would have to agree with Massa. Beck's ideal form of limited-government is resembles more closely anarchy, and this move to propagandize textbooks is only the start. The next step is to punish the intelligentsia and replace it with a twisted populist bureaucracy (populist meaning the exclusion of liberals thought)...

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  4. But shouldn't we be also be upset at how several Democrats walked out allowing the conservatives to more easily pass this into the prelminary stages?

    I understand they were making a point and saw futility in their fighting, but shouldn't it be their responsibility to fight for what they stand for? Why the hell were they even there than?

    "Hey this Hitler guy is never going to change his mind about those jews, so maybe if we make a grand gesture and leave it will bring awareness and somebody else will try to stand up for it."
    "Great idea...I didn't really want to do any work anyways."

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  5. But shouldn't we be also be upset at how several Democrats walked out allowing the conservatives to more easily pass this into the prelminary stages?

    I understand they were making a point and saw futility in their fighting, but shouldn't it be their responsibility to fight for what they stand for? Why the hell were they even there than?

    "Hey this Hitler guy is never going to change his mind about those jews, so maybe if we make a grand gesture and leave it will bring awareness and somebody else will try to stand up for it."
    "Great idea...I didn't really want to do any work anyways."

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  6. It is an awful shame that some members of the State Board of Education are using the education of our children to push their political and religious agendas. Enough is enough! This is why I'm running for Texas State Board of Education in District 5. Visit www.voterebecca.com for more information.

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  7. c, I totally agree, although I do not know the ins and outs of the school board. The Democrats who walked out just illustrates the point the GOP and the right wing have been trying to make, and that is if they have the stronger resolve, no matter how divisive their agenda is, they will eventually win because the other guy will give up.

    Rebecca, unfortunately I do not live in Texas, otherwise I would vote for you, but I will promote your campaign on my website, to help get the word out!

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