Ethnic Studies Illegal

The battle to keep the ethnic studies program in Arizona schools has come to a disappointing end when a law judge ruled that teaching a program geared towards Mexican American studies may promote racial solidarity and resentment towards whites. Jacques Billeaud of the Huffington Post reports: 

“PHOENIX — An administrative law judge ruled Tuesday that a Tucson school district’s ethnic studies program violates state law, agreeing with the findings of Arizona’s public schools chief.

Judge Lewis Kowal’s ruling marked a defeat for the Tucson Unified School District, which appealed the findings issued in June by Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal…

The judge said such teaching promotes activism against white people, promotes racial resentment and advocates ethnic solidarity.”

This particular controversy began in 2010 when (according to Wikipedia) Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed House Bill 2281, which prohibits a school district or charter school from including in its program of instruction any courses or classes that promote the overthrow of the United States government, promote resentment toward a race or class of people, are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group, or advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals. However, the debate over teaching ethnic studies in classrooms has been ongoing for years as people, mostly from the right, believes that such subjects will divide America, make people of color (PoC) out to be “victims”, promote racial resentment towards whites, and destroys the concept of individuality. 

In my opinion this kind of reaction is typical. It suggests that any method to teach outside this nation’s whitewashed history regarding the true history, personal or collective, of PoC within or affected by the American empire must not be allowed for the safety of whites. The true history regarding the oppressive histories of PoC, Latin Americans in this case, must never be taught for it may ban together Hispanic students and incite a movement against whites and probably against the American government. So, the Mexican-American War, the Zoot Suit Riots, and the mass lynching of Mexicans is never to be mentioned because I guess, that happened a long time ago. 

This brings another point to mind: If there are no studies to be taught about or projected to students of color told from a point of view they can relate to, then, what will the students of color be taught? History lessons will likely be more of the same, chapters upon chapters of white accomplishments, heroes, and history makers minus their faults and sins against PoC who will largely be absent throughout the whole text. In 2010 Texas passed new standards as to what is taught in American textbooks turning history into the white man’s story of triumph and patriotism in hundreds of pages. I have no doubt that certain people in Arizona will gladly accept those books to be part of their curriculum. 

Now, this may sound racist or prejudiced (not that I really care), but White Americans fear other people for knowing the true history of their people with regards to America more than they fear the true history themselves. This movement to suppress ethnic studies in any form proves the American pathology to bury their violent history and oppressive present. Ironically, this is a form of oppression, to keep certain people down in any way, shape, or form. This society must keep PoC unaware of its true nature by making them ignorant while promoting the majority in a pseudo-angelic light through propaganda.

So, is there any wonder why this nation’s education system is failing? It fails to accommodate all students. This move by Arizona is a slap in the face to Mexican Americans, Hispanic students, and youth of color overall. This is done out of fear. Arizona, like the rest of this country does not want PoC to know too much. Instead, they want them to be America-loving zombies who will cry at the National Anthem, sing “Yankee Doodle Dandy”, and go to war for a nation that sees them as “expendable”. 

When you think about it, it’s crazy to assume the worst from PoC when there are classes that teach them about their culture and ethnicity from a white man’s perspective. I bet some people fear that they may commit violence against whites or against the establishment. There has not been any connection between ethnic studies and anti-white violence. So, one can conclude that this is another illogical phobia against people of color for being – people of color. 

~ by brothawolf on December 29, 2011.