Education For Life Academy
Where Black History Lives!
The Standing on the Shoulders of Giants Curriculum
Class Overview cont.
Class 4: The Struggle Continues…The Ongoing Battle Against Racist Propaganda & Miseducation
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And when it comes to the Civil War, children are supposed to learn that the conflict was caused by “sectionalism, states’ rights and slavery” – written deliberately in that order to telegraph slavery’s secondary role in driving the conflict, according to some members of the state board of education."
An African American 9th grader in Pearland, Texas, further exposed the extent of the propaganda that has recently been reincorporated into U.S. history books. He texted his mother a photo of a caption in his 2015 McGraw Hill history textbook that referred to the Africans enslaved during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade as “workers,” in a section on “Immigration Patterns.” When confronted, McGraw Hill claimed that it was a simple “mistake.” By distorting history, Texas tells its students a dishonest and damaging story about the United States that prevents children from understanding the country today. Also troubling, Texas’s standards will likely affect more than just Texans: The state is the second-largest in the nation, which means books designed for its students may find their way into schools elsewhere, too.
This class chronicles the conservative attempts since 2010 to whitewash American and world history, demonstrating why he struggle against racist propaganda must continue.
Intro Unit: The Politics of Education – Enlightenment or Propaganda?
