A Thought About Arizona Legislators

Arizona in 2010 passed HB2281 which, among other things states:

A SCHOOL DISTRICT OR CHARTER SCHOOL IN THIS STATE SHALL NOT INCLUDE IN ITS PROGRAM OF INSTRUCTION ANY COURSES OR CLASSES THAT INCLUDE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING:

• PROMOTE THE OVERTHROW OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT.
• PROMOTE RESENTMENT TOWARD A RACE OR CLASS OF PEOPLE.
• ARE DESIGNED PRIMARILY FOR PUPILS OF A PARTICULAR ETHNIC GROUP.
• ADVOCATE ETHNIC SOLIDARITY INSTEAD OF THE TREATMENT OF PUPILS AS INDIVIDUALS.

 Clearly, that bill outlaws all education of American kids in Arizona since Americans are an ethnic group. Were it possible to teach American kids, the schools could not advocate patriotism since patriotism implies loyalty to one's nation as well as to one's state.

How about history? How does one teach the Second World War without promoting resentment of Nazis and Fascists, and would one want to? How does one teach the Civil War without promoting resentment of slave owners, slave traders, and the politicians who chose war to defend the institution of slavery? How does one teach the Great Depression without promoting resentment against the people who manipulated the stock market and contributed to the crash?

But lets go to mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology. How are these to be taught so as to assure that no students resent their teachers, the authors of their text books, or the people who set their exams?

You might want to read:

• What the Modern Language Association says about this law;
• An article from the Freehaven Free Press on the controversy over this law.