We have covered the ahistorical 1619 Project and the neo-racist “antiracism” of Ibram X. Kendi many times. There is a growing grassroots and state legislative movement to keep these Critical Race Theory variants out of education.
One of the high priorities of the Biden administration, however, is to force those teachings into public elementary and secondary schools through the federal Department of Education via a Rule Proposal, Proposed Priorities: American History and Civics Education.
Education Week described the heart of the Rule Proposal:
The Biden administration wants a grant program for history and civics education to prioritize instruction that accounts for bias, discriminatory policies in America, and the value of diverse student perspectives.In describing the basis for the new grant priority for American History and Civics Education programs, the administration cites the scholar and anti-racism activist Ibram X. Kendi, as well as the 1619 Project, a New York Times Magazine project that highlights slavery and its legacy as a central element in America’s story.“It is critical that the teaching of American history and civics creates learning experiences that validate and reflect the diversity, identities, histories, contributions, and experiences of all students,” the April 19 notice in the Federal Register states.
The proposal has met with substantial opposition, including this from 39 Republican Senators:
“This is a time to strengthen the teaching of civics and American history in our schools. Instead, your Proposed Priorities double down on divisive, radical, and historically-dubious buzzwords and propaganda. For example, your Proposed Priorities applaud the New York Times’s “1619 Project.” This campaign to “reframe the country’s history, understanding 1619 as our true founding” has become infamous for putting ill-informed advocacy ahead of historical accuracy. Actual, trained, credentialed historians with diverse political views have debunked the project’s many factual and historical errors, such as the bizarre and inaccurate notion that preserving slavery was a primary driver of the American Revolution. One renowned historian called the project “so wrong in so many ways.” Citing this debunked advocacy confirms that your Proposed Priorities would not focus on critical thinking or accurate history, but on spoon-feeding students a slanted story.”
Today was the last day for public comment. Over 15,000 comments have been received.
Legal Insurrection Foundation filed a comment letter (pdf.) objecting to the Rule Proposal, providing in part:
LIF strongly opposes the “Proposed Priorities-American History and Civics Education,” Docket ID No. ED-2021-OESE-0033 (the “Proposed Rule”) because it incorporates the historically inaccurate and ideologically-driven 1619 Project and the discriminatory and misleadingly titled Critical Race Theory concept of “anti-racism” which actually is neo-racist as commonly used. For the reasons detailed below, LIF urges the Department of Education to withdraw the Proposed Rule.* * *
I. Proposed Priority 1 Promotes Historically Inaccurate And Ideologically-Drive Doctrines
A. The 1619 Project is Narrative-Building Masquerading as History
The 1619 Project is a political project first published in August 2019 by New York Times Magazine that seeks to change the historical narrative of the United States. Its goal is to reinvent American history by asserting claims that have been widely debunked by historians and scholars across the political spectrum. For example, two Pulitzer Prize winning historians who are generally considered to be liberal called the 1619 Project “so wrong in so many ways” and an “unbalanced, one-sided account” that “left most of the history out.”[1] Even the World Socialist Website called the 1619 Project “a radical falsification of history.”[2] It is impossible to detail all of the inaccuracies in the 1619 Project in this comment letter, but we urge you to review and consider the website https://criticalrace.org/the-1619-project/ containing a compilation of reading material, criticisms, and other resources debunking the premises of the 1619 Project….B. Ibram X. Kendi is an Idealogue Advocating A Neo-Racist AgendaIn his book, How to Be an AntiRacist, Kendi states, “The only remedy to racist discrimination is antiracist discrimination. The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination. The only remedy to present discrimination is future discrimination.”[1] Kendi has made a career of pitting Americans against each other based on race and creating artificial distinctions that make our society less cohesive. He divides the world into ‘racists’ and ‘anti-racists’ with no middle ground allowed for people who are merely “not racist.” One can’t simply be “not racist” by treating people fairly because according to Kendi, equality rather than equity is inherently racist. Under Kendi’s formula, those who have the traditional American civil rights notion that we treat people based upon the content of their character, not the color of their skin are racist. Kendi’s teachings have the effect of creating a coercive dynamic that is unhealthy to an educational environment, especially for children….
Thanks to Ilana Cutler,Esq., LIF’s Investigations Counsel, for helping draft this opposition.
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