The pledge was signed by no teachers on March 6, the day before. It now has six pledges from Nashville 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 Nashville teachers included, "The history of the United States should not be sanitized to spare the feelings of white supremacists who would prefer to deny the incontrovertible events of the past which continue to shape the present. The fact is that another generation of legislators have chosen to use their institutional prerogative to pass more censorious laws aimed to subvert the truth demonstrates us that critical race theory is not a theory at all but, rather, an undeniable fact derived by living in a nation whose vast wealth was built on the backs of slaves" and "I will teach the truth, always. As a nation we will never heal, until we all join together to understand. Our students are our future".
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 |
|---|---|
| Eli Foster | All students need to know the accurate history about where we have come from, so we can forge a more equitable path to where we are going. |
| James Horn | The history of the United States should not be sanitized to spare the feelings of white supremacists who would prefer to deny the incontrovertible events of the past which continue to shape the present. The fact is that another generation of legislators have chosen to use their institutional prerogative to pass more censorious laws aimed to subvert the truth demonstrates us that critical race theory is not a theory at all but, rather, an undeniable fact derived by living in a nation whose vast wealth was built on the backs of slaves. |
| Jessica Sackett | Learning about what our country has done wrong is important so we can teach our students how to positively change so we can do what is right now and in the future. |
| Megan Troutman | No comment |
| Melanie Edwards | I will teach the truth, always. As a nation we will never heal, until we all join together to understand. Our students are our future. |
| Princess Gordon-Aziz | I refuse to lie to my students or downplay the events of history in order to make any group feel better about its actions or beliefs. I believe today's youth are able to make their own decisions about history based on the facts, and I am committed to giving them the facts so they can make informed choices. |
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