No new teachers sign the pledge the week before. It now has six pledges from Montpelier teachers by the end of the week ending Sep. 18.
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.
The new Montpelier teacher wrote “History matters.” when pledging to teach Critical Race Theory.
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 |
|---|---|
| David Hershey | “no comment” |
| Sylvia Fagin | Every person deserves to learn truthful facts so that they can make their own decisions about how to impact the future. |
| Alexia Buono | “no comment” |
| Shaun Stephens | Students and families deserve unvarnished truth and analysis of real history. |
| Colleen Wilford | teaching children the truth about our collective history is crucial for us all to move forward as a democratic nation. |
| Shaun Stephens | History matters. |
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