This February - after input from hundreds of NC educators - our state’s official academic standards for social studies received an update.
Among the many revisions were the inclusion of terms like “racism” and “discrimination” as concepts that students should understand.
For example, one of the new standards says students should understand “ways individuals have demonstrated resistance and resilience to inequities, injustice, and discrimination within the American system of government over time.”
As far as I can tell, no state legislators are actually opposed to this becoming part of our curriculum.
And no one has said this amounts to ‘critical race theory,’ or even tried to define what that term means.
BUT it does provide a handy excuse to launch a rhetorical attack on ‘critical race theory,’ which is a niche academic concept that is being spun by conservative media outlets as the catch-all for any attempt to discuss race.
Here's a good self-own that explains the basic strategy:
And that’s what we heard during the floor debate.
Endless condemnations of ‘critical race theory’ without any attempt to define it or tie it to our social studies curriculum.
We can expect a lot more. It started in earnest on Fox News in late January and it’s gaining steam.
The irony is that the attempt to mischaracterize our curriculum solely to open another front in the culture war only further demonstrates the need to be candid about the role that race plays in our society - because now it’s being treated as fodder for a misinformation campaign.
Meanwhile, my thanks to our social studies teachers who are going to largely ignore this political nonsense and will keep teaching our students about the world they live in.
- Jeff
P.S. - See also: 'cancel culture'
Aaaand less than one hour after I posted this, here’s Cawthorn, playing his part in the misinformation campaign:
In short, the bill says that non-profits can now conceal who their donors are.
Sounds harmless? Here’s what’s really going on:
It turns out, there are a lot of non-profits that are actually “non-profits” in that they exist primarily to funnel dark money into elections.
So if you want to give a million dollars to a campaign, but you're blocked by the limitation on how much you can directly give to a candidate ($5,600 in NC), then you can give to a handy “non-profit” that will then spend it for you on that campaign.
Unexpectedly went viral last night from a speech that shows political corruption in our state Senate happening *in real time* and explains why NC hasn’t had a budget in two years.
The kicker: “We’ll call a vote at the right time. I hope you’ll miss it.”
Turns out people have a really strong negative reaction to overt corruption by politicians who seem to take pride in it - and the ones who laugh right along with them.
I’m running for U.S. Senate because you deserve someone who stands up to political corruption.
You’ve seen me do it in the state Senate and I’ll do it in the U.S. Senate.
The bill essentially said that bodycam footage would no longer be considered a "public record."
As a result, it created two pathways for people to see the footage.
The first pathway just lets people view the footage in private and does not release it to the public.
The rule on this is the police get to determine who views the footage privately.
So if you think you were mistreated during a traffic stop and you want to see the footage - privately, with no public release - the police essentially get to determine whether or not that happens.
"Carolina Journal has learned that GOP redistricting leaders will consider approving a new map designed to elect a 10 Republicans and four Democrats beginning in 2022."
A bill filed in our state legislature this week (SB514) would require that teachers report in writing to a student’s parents if they’ve “exhibited symptoms of gender nonconformity.”
So, the length of their hair? The colors they're wearing?
Read for yourself:
Can you imagine the chaos this would create in high schools across our state if it became law, the constant discussion among students and teachers about which student’s dress and behavior crossed the legal line into the mandatory reporting of "gender nonconformity"?
Imagine the leverage this would give high school bullies, how they could use this law to threaten to out certain students to their teachers.