The pledge was signed by no teachers on Feb. 21, the day before. It now has eight pledges from Marietta teachers.
They’re one of the thousands of US teachers pledging to continue educating students about the controversial Critical Race Theory, which explains racism is embedded in US culture and politics.
Comments from Marietta teachers included, "I will not lie to my children to appease wrongdoers. I will not be complicit in this nonsense" and "ALL students deserve to know their history. And our kids are smart and thoughtful, and they can handle the truth - the good and the bad - and still learn to love our country. Telling our country's story through a white lens harms our black and brown students, and I will not participate in that harm".
Though the concept was first suggested in the late 70’s, it has recently exploded as a contentious issue between the American right and left in the last two years.
Many who signed the pledge are defying state bans on the teachings. Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas have passed legislation banning discussions about the US being inherently racist.
Other states, such as Montana and South Dakota, have denounced the teachings without passing specific legislation.
In an interview with The Washington Free Beacon', Ashley Varner of the Freedom Foundation accused the Zinn Education Project of providing “left-leaning propaganda to teachers.”
| Teachers | Thoughts on Critical Race Theory |
|---|---|
| Greg Brooking | I will not lie to my children to appease wrongdoers. I will not be complicit in this nonsense. |
| Marcie Donaldson | my students are the future leaders, and they deserve to learn to be critical thinkers and solvers of problems. |
| Michelle Tooson | It matters |
| Quinn Powers | I believe that everyone, especially children have the right to learn the truth about their history. The good, the bad and the ugly. It's all apart of what's brought us to where we are now. I will not lie to my student's, my children or myself about what has taken place in history past, present or the possible future. |
| Sandra Davis | ALL students deserve to know their history. And our kids are smart and thoughtful, and they can handle the truth - the good and the bad - and still learn to love our country. Telling our country's story through a white lens harms our black and brown students, and I will not participate in that harm. |
| Sandy Piper | History is for critical thinking. If we pick and choose what to teach, how can students learn this skill? Learn to find bias? |
| Tanya Frierson | The truth can’t be censored and we need to encourage critical thinking and critical conversations in and out of the classroom. |
| Vickey Bolling | I am a biracial woman Who has experienced firsthand the problem in our society pertains to race and gender. My family has and continues to struggle do to being part black and part white. I’m signing this petition because we need to answer questions not heard from them. We need to teach people to be critically thinkers-to ask questions and explore what they encounter. |
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