New Hampshire bans public school teachers from telling kids they’re inherently racist or oppressive because of unchosen traits like skin color.
Some lawmakers want to overturn the ban.
The debated law, Right to Freedom from Discrimination in Public Workplaces and Education, is imperfect. But we live in a world where some taxpayer-funded educators, inspired by noxious doctrines like critical race theory, are eager to accuse students of being inherently racist or sexist or oppressive.
Obviously, though, moral wrongdoing is something chosen. One doesn’t commit it merely by having a certain hue, gender, or ancestors.
So how can one reasonably object to a provision stating that “No government program shall teach [that] an individual, by virtue of his or her age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, [etc.] is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously”?
The law itself stresses that it’s not to be interpreted as prohibiting discussion of “the historical existence of ideas and subjects” like racism. Nevertheless, critics falsely claim that the law bans classroom discussion of racism as such. And their repeal bill, HB61, seeks not to perfect the current law but to repeal all sections “relative to the right to freedom from discrimination in public workplaces and education.”
New Hampshire lawmaker Jim Kofalt rightly reminds proponents of HB61 of the vision of Martin Luther King, a future where his children would “not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
Illustrations created with Midjourney and DALL-E2
—
See all recent commentary
(simplified and organized)
2 replies on “Inherent Racism of Racism”
Almost all racism is based on culturalism, which is a valid evaluation, since cultures are not equivalent and different cultures have superiority, AKA vastly differing abilities to promote a stable society in different contexts. But since cultural characteristics are elective, it is extremely racist to conflate culturalism and racism; and to deny the differences.
The rôle of the ACLU in this fight illustrates its capture by a coalition who imagines that liberty can be restricted only to those who behave as prescribed.
I sadly remember an era in which the ACLU deserved defense against right-wing attacks.