Do you think the school curriculum is “whitewashed”: – It must be stopped

UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT, WASHINGTON DC (Nettavisen): – There are some problematic and inconvenient truths about the history of the United States, says Damon Hewitt, director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, to Nettavisen.

He refers to the transatlantic slave trade and racial segregation – parts of America’s dark past.

– They were bred like they were animals. It’s a disturbing and troubled story that some are either trying to pretend never happened or doesn’t matter at all, says Hewitt.

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– We are told that it indoctrinates students

Now several Americans fear that the process of “whitewashing” history is underway. They have therefore gathered on the steps of the US Supreme Court to protest.

– Whitewashing takes place when people say we can’t even teach children about slavery, segregation and the civil rights movement. We are told that this cannot be taught in the classroom because it indoctrinates students. That is false, says Hewitt.

In the 2022-2023 school year, books were censored or banned 3,362 times in different states in the United States. 1557 books were removed. The number of attempts to ban books was a record high. PEN America reported that in 2023.

A large proportion of the books are written by black authors or authors who are part of the LGBT community. Here are some examples of books written by black Americans that have been banned.

• The short story “The Hate You Give” is about a teenage girl who witnessed a childhood friend being killed by a police officer. The book has been banned in several schools. Critics say it promotes critical race theory and/or an anti-police message.
• “Black Birds in the Sky” tells about the Tulsa massacre in 1921. The book is non-fiction.
• The 1619 Project is a collection of essays on African American history from 2019, which later developed into a collaboration with over 400 teachers. In Florida, teachers are not allowed to teach the subject.

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Over 40 percent of all bans in 2023 took place in the sunshine state of Florida, according to PEN America. There, former presidential candidate and Republican Ron DeSantis is the governor. He launched the “Stop Woke” law in 2021. Schools and workplaces can no longer teach students or staff teams that suggest a person is privileged or oppressed because of skin colour, gender or nationality.

– That is the indoctrination. It is ignoring history and censoring, says Hewitt.

He believes it should be forbidden to ban. President Biden has stated that banning books is wrong. In 2023, he appointed Matt Nosanchuk to monitor the situation. “Instead of erasing history, we should make history,” the president said in his State of the Union address.

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– Must be stopped

In 2020 when the “woke” debate in the United States was about statues or whether to tear down statues, Donald Trump stated that children are taught to hate their country and believe that the men and women who built the United States were villains.

– How do you think the situation will develop if Trump becomes president?

– During Trump’s first term as president, he tried to ban diversity training in the federal government. It must be stopped at all costs, says Hewitt.

At the same time, Hewitt emphasizes that the problem is bigger than one individual.

– The threat is structural. It existed before Trump and will exist after Trump. He definitely aggravates the situation, but he is not the only factor. We need to focus on the bigger picture.