An affluent school district in Naperville, Illinois, is once again supporting its “systemic racism and equity training” institutions while forcing educators to read new racist works.
An already disturbing conspiracy has intensified in the affluent Deep Blue School District, located just outside of Chicago.
On Friday, Superintendent Dan Bridges of Reber City School District 203 gave a recorded video of a Feb. 26 “critical race theory training” by the Countywide Equity Institute categorical support. The district also reportedly sent out a mandatory Google survey on March 9 asking staff to select one of the speakers’ books for “further study” after the training, with a deadline of March 16. A teacher said the district sends out the mandatory survey weekly.
The district’s “critical race theory training” materials for teachers teach that people with whiter skin than others are inherently racist. After the material was leaked, the community expressed concern about it. The Bridges community responded by asking taxpayers to stop complaining about what he was doing with their money.
The superintendent claimed, “Let me be perfectly clear with our community today. We will not tolerate hate-filled comments and threats.” He equated dissenting opinions directly to violence.
He said, “While everyone is entitled to their opinion, threats against the safety of our staff and presenters will not be tolerated. It is unacceptable. Reber 203 is supporting teachers and other staff and building their capacity to create inclusive learning environments where all students are represented and have a fair opportunity to participate meaningfully in all aspects of instruction.”
The district has removed all YouTube comments on the superintendent’s video, which certainly calls into question Bridges’ statement that “all students” and staff should be able to “participate in all aspects of teaching and learning.”
Teachers in the district, as well as Parents, contacted The Federalist because they feared retaliation if they spoke publicly about concerns about the district’s advocacy of racism.
One elementary school teacher in the district, speaking to The Federalist on condition of anonymity, said, “What he really wants to say to me is that he wants to flush us out like a toilet and reprogram our brains. He doesn’t want to understand a different point of view. He wanted me to be on the side of what he called “awakening,” and he wanted me to understand why I was white, why I was privileged, and how that affected my classroom.”
A former teacher and parent whose child attended the district said it was not “threatening” to allow citizens to share differing opinions.
The parent noted, initially, “I didn’t know that training took place, that my children didn’t attend school, that they didn’t attend school on Mondays and Tuesdays for conferences, and then again on Fridays when they had two days of school and only one day of face-to-face instruction. I didn’t know that either, I didn’t know about it until (The Federalist) reported it, so I just assumed it was from the other side. “
We can’t just allow one side to make their comment and believe it’s correct unless we challenge it,” said Jim Ruhl, chairman of the Republican Party of Ripert. It’s just a political statement on their part, with no real outcome or direction. “
Ruhl added, “A lot of times, the drive comes more from the union. ” His children graduated from North Ripley High School.
Two weeks ago, Dan Iverson, a representative of the local teachers’ union, sent a letter to faculty advocating for “a more equitable school district and a more equitable society.”
Kevin, a resident of School District 203, tweeted: It’s sad to see the school district where I used to attend K-12 programs supporting such intense partisan training. @SchoolDistrict203 Dan Bridges
Dena Simmons: Last week, I gave a keynote speech in a conservative school district that caused my usual #goodtrouble. My inbox was full of hate mail and threats. I was disturbed, especially after the racist attack at Yale University (last) June. There was a whole article attacking me with false facts. It’s not an easy job, but I’ll keep doing it.
Dan Bridges: Thank you @DinaSimmons for joining Reber School District 203 for a thoughtful conversation that will make some people uncomfortable, but is necessary for all.
Adam Russo, Licensed Clinical Social Worker: To maximize the discussion, introduce
@TheOfficerTatum to create balance and then critical thinking and debate. I guess that’s how deeper ideas are formed?
Dina Simmons: Thank you to the many educators in @RiperSchoolDistrict203 for drowning out the hate with love and support. I worry about your neighbors, whose white vulnerability is quickly turning into white anger, and what that means for young people. I believe you will fight for #collectivejustice.
Mark Nessim: I don’t know, I kind of want my kids to learn basic math and reading comprehension before I turn them into social activists – really wish we were talking about getting kids back into school.
Dina Simmons: After posting this tweet @ReberSchoolDistrict203 many educators have expressed their love and support. @danbridges, I didn’t want to disclose your school district either, so I didn’t mention you by name. I think now that you’ve done that, it’s Time to focus on recovering from what’s been revealed in this moment.
DanBridges: As the leader of @ReberSchoolDistrict203, it’s my turn to represent our children …… To ensure we value the dignity and uniqueness of each person …… and ensure we commit to identifying and addressing inequities in our system and all forms of racism, discrimination and intolerance ……
Mark Nessim: It’s really out of place…getting kids back to school – sticking to the basics because they need it so much – math, reading comprehension. Dan, you’re in a “let them eat cake” moment. This speaks to the insensitivity and lack of understanding of reality in today’s students.
Personal attacks instead of defending their ideas
The Federalist tried repeatedly to contact keynote speaker Dena Simmons and other speakers for a statement. No one responded. Bridges and Assistant Superintendent Jayne Willard have been dodging emails and phone calls, even after school district employees connected The Federalist reporter to their direct line.
Simmons even posted a request for comment from The Federalist on Twitter, demonstrating her unwillingness to engage in a civil conversation with those who think differently than she does.
Gabe: Hi, Ms. Simmons, what are your comments on the following questions?
1) If in fact your determination to have a free and open discussion is important, which seems to be echoed on Twitter by teachers and yourself, why don’t you support it?
Dina Simmons: It was @PittTweet student intern wrote a dirty article about my fake news that led to hateful racist attacks and threats. What kind of news is this? He sent this rude email an hour ago asking AM to respond to this rude question.
The original whistleblower, a school district high school teacher, said, “They pay lip service to ‘let’s have an open discourse’ and everything, but apparently that’s not what they want. They don’t want an open discourse unless they have support for their views. That’s evident in your attempts to reach out to them and all their tweets. Dina Simmons playing the victim role is crazy. “
Racism goes farther than training
In keeping with the new racist statewide “citizenship” mandate, Reber School District 203 last week asked district employees to fill out a Google form. Teachers must choose one of six books written by anti-racism speakers to take “(their) equity learning one step further.” That form was due Tuesday.
“Any time there is a question about whether or to what extent to follow Critical Race Theory (CRT)-based ” the new standards will be divisive, the pro-CRT side will now have the upper hand. Who would dare to go against state policy if they knew that their superiors could use the policy as a reason for bad performance reviews, etc.? I’ve heard that some teachers in Illinois are considering early retirement because of the new standards. I don’t blame them. “
Here is the form obtained by The Federalist, which has been masked to select educators at the request of the person in question.
Elena Aguila of The Fairness Coach argues that America is rooted in white supremacy. White supremacy claims that whites cannot be discriminated against. Aguila writes, “Without white supremacy, racism as we know it would not exist. The foundation of racism is the ideology of ‘white’ superiority. When I use the term ‘white supremacy’ in this book (as I often do), I am referring to the mindset and belief system of white supremacy that has been institutionalized in policy” (p. 7).
On page 30, Aquila writes, “Structural racism is at the root of educational inequity. People create inequitable systems, and we perpetuate inequitable systems, consciously or unconsciously. Inequitable systems are constructed by rulers to subjugate large populations, to keep people enslaved, disempowered, disenfranchised, and marginalized. Educational inequity is the result of intentional design. “
An elementary school teacher with children read “The Equity Coach” and was deeply disturbed. The teacher told The Federalist.
“The whole tone of the book is racist. To me, when I have to read something like this, are we being treated racist? I feel like I’m being judged for my thoughts and beliefs because of the color of my skin. This book categorizes me as if I have this ‘privileged’ Life. They are drawing a wedge between all of us. “
The teacher also noted that employees of the Rebekah School District were asked to enter the Zoom breakout room in order to agree to be portrayed as racist based solely on the color of their skin.
“They are forcing us to have a conversation,” the educator said.” I felt forced to speak in a way that fit their narrative, not my internal narrative. “
Asra Q. Nomani, a former Wall Street Journal reporter and parent advocate in northern Virginia, said, “Reber School District officials are promoting the books of Woke Ed Inc.”, a multi-million dollar industry that peddles the propaganda of ‘critical race theory’ thinkers to our K-12 students through their teachers. Author Sara Ahmed has hijacked the concept of ‘unconscious bias’ and ‘microaggressions’ to young people’s brains, making them believe they are racists who use them to discriminate against people they don’t even know. And recommended author Paul Gorski, who sells his services through a consulting firm, the ‘Equity Literacy Institute,’ has among his goodies ‘Equity Assessment ‘ and ‘Equity Planning Leadership’ for monetization sales.” Other must-reads are equally radical.
On March 9, Fox News anchor Shannon Bream reported on a second Federalist article about Reber’s training that educators say has caused a stir among district leaders.
Bream said, “Teachers in a suburban Illinois district doubled down on ‘anti-racism’ training, suggesting that Trump voters are ‘racists’ and ‘white supremacists.’ The Federalist reported on an ‘All-County Fairness Institute’ training that reportedly included a slide claiming that the ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan was ‘covertly racist ‘ comparable to the N-word (niggers), hate crimes, lynchings and the KKK.”
This is brought to you by the American higher Education system
Kurtz says, ” The rise of ‘critical race theory’ is the product of decades of leftist dominance in American colleges and universities. A generation was educated in postmodernism, neo-Marxism, and their derivatives in various schools of identity politics. Many believed that once graduates entered the ‘real world’ and began paying taxes, these ideas would fade away. This has proven to be wrong. The survival of our republic depends on how we educate the next generation. Decades of leftism in our schools have put our republic at risk.”
The teachers said an email sent by Bridges on March 10 included a notice that said “distribution of this information” would be “considered a violation of the acceptable use policy and may be subject to disciplinary action.” They said it was the first time, to their knowledge, that such a notice had been provided on district communications. But what is Rebel School District 203 trying to hide?
In the email obtained by The Federalist, Bridges said the following about the “Countywide Equity Institute” in Reber School District 203
I want to thank everyone for their participation in the “Countywide Equity Institute.” The discussion of systemic inequity and/or institutional racism has helped people understand how our current state (well-documented disparities and inequities) came to be. The next phase of this learning is to increase the discourse among employees, understand different perspectives, and determine the next steps in our learning plan based on the needs of all stakeholders. Fair work can be uncomfortable, and we expect it to be so. What matters is how we respond to it. Even in uncomfortable situations, it’s important to begin healing and change through open dialogue. I’ve been proud of our work in this area and of all the employees who have been on this journey with us.
If Bridges is trying to allow for ideological diversity and fair treatment of all people, why were his comments on the YouTube video shut down? Why did he threaten “possible disciplinary action” against any faculty member who might pass out taxpayer-funded emails in public ?
A Reber elementary school teacher said, “(Bridges) labeled me a racist through the emails he sent, adding to the fear that he is a leader in our district who not only misrepresents what the real problem is, but is now putting the problem on our district, creating division with untrue comments about our district teachers, saying we are ‘targets’ and that we are ‘threats’. It’s not true at all.”
The teacher added, “If you’re not one of the sheep who says the right things and you try to say something different, you’re automatically labeled and the emails have your name on them.”
Pay me to shame your kids for the color of their skin
Bridges is an employee of a large public school district and should be held accountable to those who provide him with an extremely comfortable salary. The superintendent makes $266,542 a year, the highest salary in the district, according to public records. The 2020 budget for Rebel School District 203 is reportedly $293.6 million — with $258,030,941 in revenue from local property taxes, state funds and federal funds.
All teachers who spoke with The Federalist continued to request anonymity, concerned about the potential impact of the far-left, publicly funded agency and the public school district’s anti-free speech standards.
The whistleblower said, “All the teachers in the department I work with share my views, but are afraid to speak up.”
“If Dan has the time and money to do this training, he should use it to get our kids back in school.” The parent and former educator said he alluded to the school district’s distance learning, which has only recently changed. “They’re just trying to cover their -asses. Our kids shouldn’t feel bad because they have a Trump flag on their house or they say ‘Make America Great Again.’ Now we’re being discriminated against.”
A dissenting elementary school teacher in the district pointed to Bridges and said, “We are people who don’t look at skin color. We’re the ones who want to lift every child up. But you, sir, want me to look at skin color.”
Gabe Kaminsky, the author of this article, is an intern at The Federalist and a student at the University of Pittsburgh. His work has appeared in The Daily Caller, Town Hall, Fox News, The Washington Times, The American Conservative, RealClearPolitics, The Washington Examiner, and elsewhere. He is a participant in the Heritage Foundation Academy program. Follow him on Twitter @Gabe__Kaminsky.
The North American Conservative Review comments.
Naperville, an upscale suburb of Chicago, has been ranked among the nation’s most livable cities for many years and third in the nation in 2021.
The city’s excellent living environment and educational resources have attracted a large number of middle-class Asian families and above. According to statistics, in 2020, the total population of Ripley City is 141,853, including 21,170 Asians, accounting for 14.92% of the total population; School District 203 has 23 schools, including one early education school, 14 elementary schools, five middle schools, two high schools and one “transitional school “with an annual budget of $2.936 billion. The total enrollment is 16,955 students, of which 17.81% are Asian, second only to 60.58% white, 11.39% Latino, and 4.85% African-American. The largest Chinese Christian church in the greater Chicago area, Living Water Evangelical Church, is located in the City of Ripley. As a result, the political movement in School District 203 will have a significant impact on the Chinese community.
The so-called “critical race theory” is the belief that there is systematic racial discrimination in the United States, which is rooted in the idea of “white supremacy” and therefore whites are born racist; and that blacks in the United States are the descendants of black slaves who were trafficked from Africa to America after 1619. Black people in America are the descendants of black slaves who were trafficked from Africa to America after 1619, and they are naturally exploited and oppressed. Blacks want equality – not equality of opportunity, but equality of outcome.
Starting from this, math became a “racist” subject because black students generally did less well in math than other ethnic groups. Anyone who says that black students do not do well in math commits a racist faux pas and must be fired from public office.
It can be expected that if School District 203 remains under the leadership of this district superintendent, the number of African-American and Latino students will immediately outnumber Asians, and the way student performance is assessed will be skewed in favor of African-American and Latino students, and the excellent grades achieved by Asian students by virtue of their gifts and efforts will be “critically racial theories” in one fell swoop.
More importantly, the idea that we Asians value Family, education, and hard work to get rich will also be seen as “racist” and will be severely discouraged.
The “critical race theory” is nothing new, it is essentially a replica of the Chinese Communist Party‘s class struggle theory, except that “white people” are substituted for landlords and capitalists; “black people ” instead of the working class and the poor peasants. The “Asians” can be the “filial sons and grandsons of the exploiting class” or the “reformable” middle elements, so we must honestly undergo ideological reform.
This is truly another “Cultural Revolution“. It is believed that this Cultural Revolution has already spread throughout the Democratic Party-dominated cities in the United States, and the Chicago suburb of Ripert is just a microcosm.
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