T is for Texas (or is the alphabet liberal-biased)

"Reality is what you make it!" -- Santa

Texas Governor Rick Perry and the Texas tea party may have had a legitimate point. Maybe Texas should secede. On Friday, the Texas Board of Education donned their conservative cowboy boots and performed a Texas 2-step spin all over the social studies curriculum and any colleagues who disagreed. Among some of the 100 amendments accepted and rejected:

– To avoid exposing students to “transvestites, transsexuals and who knows what else,” the Board struck the curriculum’s reference to “sex and gender as social constructs.”


– The Board removed Thomas Jefferson from the Texas curriculum, “replacing him with religious right icon John Calvin.”


– The Board refused to require that “students learn that the Constitution prevents the U.S. government from promoting one religion over all others.”


– The Board struck the word “democratic” from the description of the U.S. government, instead terming it a “constitutional republic.”

Just as balance became a trend demanded of journalism, the conservative faction of the board demanded balance in the classroom.  The leader of this group is Dr. Don McLeroy -- doctor as in dentist, not a PhD -- proposed rewriting the handling of the civil rights movement to reflect "both sides of the story as opposed to a single, politically correct view." His proposal to include the phrase "unrealistic expectation for equal outcomes" as a result of the movement was removed. He proposed including the "violent philosophy of the Black Panthers".  There was no mention as to whether Dentist McLeroy would approve the inclusion or if he even knew about the origins of the Black Panthers or their community involvement. Maybe community involvement (i.e., socialism) was what frightened the dentist in the first place.

Dentist McLeroy's logic for stressing American Exceptionalism: "The United States is an exceptional nation. Most Americans would not regard that as a controversial statement. And there is good reason for that: it is true."  Using that logic, if we believe it to be true then it must be historical fact.

Other changes:

1) The word "capitalism" has been removed in all grades and replaced with "free enterprise system".  Logic: “Let’s face it, capitalism does have a negative connotation,” said one conservative member, Terri Leo. “You know, ‘capitalist pig!’"  Yes, Ms. Leo, it must be the name-calling and not the possible uneven distribution of wealth. Besides, many wealthy people are quite happy being a capitalist pig.

2) Deemed too negative: American "imperialism" and the word "propaganda", in reference to America's entry into WWII. Imperialism was replaced with "expansionism" and the word "propaganda" was removed completely.

3) On The Middle East: High school world history students will be expected to "explain how Arab rejection of the State of Israel has led to ongoing conflict" and no longer will be asked to "explain the origins and impact of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on global politics," per amendments from McLeroy.

4) Include “the unintended consequences” of the Great Society legislation, affirmative action and Title IX legislation.  ...Okay.... help me here... anybody?

5) Include the U.S. also held Germans and Italians in internment camps, not just the Japanese, so no one will think we were motivated by racism.

6) Barbara Cargill, won passage of an amendment requiring the teaching of “the importance of personal responsibility for life choices” in a section on teenage suicide, dating violence, sexuality, drug use and eating disorders. “The topic of sociology tends to blame society for everything,” Ms. Cargill said. (I know. This really does seem like something one would read on The Onion, doesn't it? It is getting harder and harder to tell the difference these days.)

7) Cynthia Dunbar, graduate of Pat Robertson's Regent University Law School, managed to cut out Thomas Jefferson and add St. Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin and William Blackstone. (Jefferson is not well liked among conservatives on the board because he coined the term “separation between church and state.”)

Mary Helen Berlanga, after attempts to include more Latino figures as role models for the state's large Hispanic population, walked out late Thursday night. “They can just pretend this is a white America and Hispanics don’t exist.” “They are going overboard, they are not experts, they are not historians,” she said. “They are rewriting history, not only of Texas but of the United States and the world.” Looks like they want to rewrite history to make Republicans look more favorable as well.

Hopefully, education will prevail. The public will be able to review and comment on the standards at the Texas Education Agency Web site and can send comments to rules@tea.state.tx.us. A final vote on the standards will come in May.

With the exception of the obvious, why does Texas matter? Because the majority of textbooks come from Texas. With the availability and use of more electronic devices, it could have less of an impact, if passed. Let's hear some support for the Kindle!

Sources:
Think Progress
The Austin American Statesman
The New York Times