Gov. Lee signs bill with amendment that prohibits lessons on racial issues and racism – WBIR.com

The bill allows state leaders to withhold funding for schools that teach lessons on racial issues, racism and other social issues.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. Governor Bill Lee signed a bill on Tuesday that allows state leaders to withhold funding for schools that teach about social, cultural and legal issues related to race and racism.

The bill, S.B. 0623, includes several routine policies for educators across Tennessee. An amendment introduced by Representative John Ragan (R - Oak Ridge) also includes a policy prohibiting schools from giving lessons on a series of 14 topics.

The topics focus on racial issues, as well as power dynamics that could affect people in the U.S. Opponents of the bill said that some of the topics can be vague and difficult for teachers to follow.

It also prevents educators from discussing a common critique of meritocracy, which is a form of government supposing that people move into positions of power based on their abilities.

Those topics educators cannot cover are listed below:

The amendment also specifies that schools can teach about ethnic groups' histories as described in textbooks and instructional materials. Educators can also only teach about controversial aspects of history, such as racial oppression or slavery, as long those discussions are impartial.

Educators who violate the amendment can risk losing state funding for their schools, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee.

With the stroke of a pen, the governor has silenced constructive dialogue that would educate individuals on the discrimination and systemic barriers that people of color still face in this country including long-term inequalities in educational outcomes, incarceration rates, economic advancement and health outcomes as well as ways we can move forward together," said Hedy Weiberg, the executive director of the ACLU of Tennessee.

In a statement Wednesday, Ragan compared teaching the education topics listed above to "Marxist/Alinsky style indoctrination."

"In short, this indoctrination wastes valuable education time that could be better used in upgrading literacy or numeracy in our schools," he said. "Such political philosophies are not designed to bring people together. Rather, instruction using these tenets is intended to sow hatred, division and discord."

Governor Lee signed the bill after it was sent to a conference so that differences between two versions of the bill from the House and Senate could be resolved. The majority opinion in the conference said that the amendment should be adopted.

"The governor appears to have amnesia about his own words: history without understanding is quickly forgotten,'" said Weiberg.

The bill will apply to the 2021-2022 school year.

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Gov. Lee signs bill with amendment that prohibits lessons on racial issues and racism - WBIR.com