Great piece here from @DavidAFrench on the threats posed by the anti-woke Right. And the fact is that he only mentions just a few of the countless disturbing episodes out there right now.
@DavidAFrench I encourage everyone to read the ACLU's lawsuit against the state of Oklahoma. That state passed an anti-CRT law last spring. Since then, it has caused public schools to drop To Kill a Mockingbird and A Raisin in the Sun from curricula.
@DavidAFrench Even if Youngkin doesn't win, we already have proof of concept. Next legislative session will bring a wave of similar laws and EOs. With them will come the fear, paranoia, and anger. You can agree with the general motive behind this stuff and still acknowledge the threat.
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I awoke this morning to Richard Hanania’s Dems-are-Readers-but-Reps-are-Watchers theory taking Twitter by storm. It’s bedtime now and this post tears that theory to shreds. dochammer.substack.com/p/contra-hanan…
Here’s the partisan breakdown of where people get their news, focusing just on those who say they follow politics closely. You really think these differences are stark or large enough to support Hanania’s conclusions about partisan elites?
Here it is for those who are most knowledgeable about politics.
@monkeycageblog It was the fastest I've ever written anything for publication, and given the pace of events, I had to omit a lot of relevant issues. E.g. I don't talk a lot about the role of Egypt, the UAE, or KSA.
@monkeycageblog For instance, these statements from Egypt and KSA are very weak.
Canadian faculty need to have a long, frank discussion about why so much attention and activism have been directed toward censuring Toronto over the Azarova Affair, but so little interest in doing likewise with Mount Allison.
@censureutoronto is taking a well-earned victory lap these days, and I’m genuinely happy for everyone involved in that effort. But Rima Azar deserves the same level of support. And so far, it hasn’t materialized.
The most palatable reason is that unlike at Toronto, Mount A has a faculty union. That union has filed a grievance (which @CAUT_ACPPU supports), and a hearing is scheduled for next spring. So the system there is still “working”.
This won't do. Bernstein is looking for a reason why Texas's anti-CRT law doesn't have to lead to instruction in Holocaust denial. But it just won't work.
Left is the relevant provision from HB 3979, which is currently in effect. Right is SB3, which the state hastily passed last month once the deficiencies of 3979 became apparent. Minor differences, but the way they handle this issue is pretty much the same.
According to Texas teachers, the Holocaust is a "currently controversial issue". In fact, they claim that members of the public have explicitly raised it as one meriting an opposing view.
I have a serious allergy to this sort of thinking. Maybe it's because of rank self-interest (always a possibility!), but I genuinely think a big reason has to do with the Iraq War.
It's become popular these days to say that the "experts" were wrong about the Iraq War. That's not how it looked at the time to me. To me, it all just depends on which experts you were listening to.
I can recall, back during my undergrad days when the war was just starting and I was beginning to study Arabic, how all of my teachers and all the people whose books I was reading were vehemently opposed to the invasion.
School administrator: "As you go through, just try to remember the concepts of Bill 3979, and make sure that if, if you have a book on the Holocaust that you have one that has an opposing, that has other perspectives."
Teacher: Holocaust?! How do you oppose the Holocaust? What?