AAUP National
by John McNay
January 29, 2021
At a time when the nation is confronting our deep-rooted racial inequity, legislators in several states have moved to restrict teaching about oppression, race, and gender. In Iowa, a bill was introduced that would strip funding from K–12 schools or institutions of higher education that use curriculum derived from or similar to the New York Times’s 1619 Project, which delves into the racial history of the United States, arguing in particular that the nation was founded on the basis of slavery. In Arkansas, a similar bill would likewise restrict funding for K–12 schools and public colleges and universities that include instruction on topics that “promote division between, resentment of or social justice for a particular group; are designed primarily for students of a particular ethnic group; or advocate the solidarity of or isolation of students based on a particular characteristic.” Like the Trump administration’s absurd 1776 Report (which was quickly withdrawn by the incoming Biden administration), these bills and similar efforts brewing in other states are deeply troubling for several reasons.
First, their goal is to thwart antiracist progress by suppressing teaching and learning about the role of racism in the history of the United States.