The pledge was signed by no teachers on March 7, the day before. It now has eight pledges from Jacksonville 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 Jacksonville teachers included, "My students are capable of learning and thinking critically about a diverse range of subjects. I will not lower my expectations of them or the quality of my instruction in order to appease the fickle winds of political favor" and "I believe in the freedom to teach what is true".
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 |
|---|---|
| Dylan Harvey | I believe in the freedom to teach what is true. |
| Ellen Stewart | Not teaching racial inequality in American History curricula is fundamentally wrong. Personal bias has no place in teaching any subject, especially history. It's like an English teacher teaching the alphabet from A to L and choose to leave out M to Z. Who would ever do that? Answer: NO ONE! |
| Jo Carlisle | No comment |
| Kevin Smith | My students are capable of learning and thinking critically about a diverse range of subjects. I will not lower my expectations of them or the quality of my instruction in order to appease the fickle winds of political favor. |
| Lance Duff | We can't let propaganda ruin our country |
| Robert Wilkison | No comment |
| Tim Gilmore | I will not stop teaching the facts. |
| Warren Buck | All of our students deserve to know the whole truth and teachers need to be trusted to best know the needs of their classes. |
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