On Thursday, March 19, the California Department of Education passed the nation’s first Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies, which will be required for high school students, amid a chorus of opposition. Pictured is the library of Hollywood High School in Hollywood, California.
The California Department of Education has adopted the nation’s first controversial Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC). Supporters argue that it is important to teach about discrimination and oppression. But opponents point to the model curriculum’s inclusion of controversial critical race theory.
More than 100 people participated in the public meeting held by the Board of Education on Thursday to voice their opinions, most of whom opposed the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies. But in the end, board members voted unanimously to adopt the Model Curriculum and use it as a model for other states to follow.
The Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies, which was adopted this Time, is the fourth version of a revised curriculum of nearly 900 pages. Supporters say the curriculum is designed to teach high school students about the struggles and contributions of peoples who have been historically marginalized.
This decision by the California Department of Education was incomprehensible to a large number of Parents and groups who opposed the curriculum. After delving into the syllabus of the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies, some parents found that the actual content of this curriculum has nothing to do with the historical origins, Culture, or customs of the various ethnic groups, nor does it teach students to respect the cultural differences between the various ethnic groups.
Ms. Liu, a parent of a student in Southern California, said some violent revolutionaries are included in the list of influential people of color. “The curriculum also includes content on radical sex education, ‘Black Lives Matter’ (BLM), LGBTQ, and even learning about the culture of hate and teaching students to self-socialize class divisions.”
In February, the California Coalition for Equal Rights (CFER) launched a statewide poll on the state of public education in grades K-12, which showed that nearly 90 percent of Californians are dissatisfied with public education; more than 80 percent do not want the Model Ethnic Studies Curriculum as a required course for high school graduates; and more than 77.7 percent disagree with California’s implementation of the critically charged Model Ethnic Studies More than 77.7 percent disagree with California’s implementation of the critical Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum.
Wu Wenyuan, executive director of CFER, who has studied the curriculum for many years, noted that the first version of the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies was the most radical, a set of brainwashing lessons based on Marxist and communist theories, and the words used were extreme. “Later, because of concerns and objections, the second set of versions was modified, and the third version removed some more.”
She said the earlier curriculum’s guiding spirit featured words related to Marxism, anti-capitalism, and hyper-radicalism, and also included celebrating the pioneers of violent revolution and labeling ethnic cleansing (Racial Purity); the list of black leaders did not mention civil rights leaders Martin Luther King, Jr. Lewis. Instead, typical communists and neo-Marxists such as Angela Davis and members of the Black Panther Party are strongly promoted.
Since last December, CFER has joined with a loose coalition of other ethnic organizations to hold several events to convey civil opposition to the California Department of Education.
“The final version of ESMC, compared to the previous versions, (looks) to have eliminated a lot of radical elements and content, but only in a more subtle way, and the tone is still critical race theory.” Wu Wenyuan says, “And it still strongly promotes ‘victim,’ ‘oppressor,’ ‘totalitarian,’ ‘privileged ‘ and other concepts. No matter how it’s changed, it’s still brainwashing students.”
Other S.C. parents who have lived in communist countries feel that the tone of the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies currently being adopted in California is the same propaganda used by communist countries in stirring up racial and class struggles and erasing the goodness of humanity.
It is reported that the California Department of Education directors have indicated that the fourth edition of the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies is only a starting point, and that the syllabus will be supplemented and expanded at a later date.
In California, the Model Curriculum for Ethnic Studies has been under discussion for many years. The reason it has been pushed forward again in recent years originated with the passage of AB 2016 by the California Legislature in 2016, which requires students in grades 7 through 12 to take an ethnic studies course.
Wu Wenyuan said this model curriculum adopted by the California Department of Education will likely serve as a guide for school districts across the state and the United States to implement ethnic curriculum in elementary and secondary education. “There are groups currently pushing for this curriculum in various school districts in California, pushing for versions of the curriculum that also include the most extreme and radical first version.”
So next, she said, “We will be going out to school districts to research and monitor the implementation of the ethnic curriculum at the district level and continue to talk about the dangers of a critical race theory curriculum.”
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