House Bill 322 and House Bill 327 criminalize the teaching of diverse topics that have otherwise been mistaken for being divisive. Both of these bills make it egregiously difficult and nearly impossible to teach topics such as white supremacy, slavery, racism, colorism, sexism, LGBTQ+, respecting/understanding pronouns, BLM, and many other issues/movements in history. Which is unfortunate as these are all crucial topics to discuss now more than ever. 

HB 322: “Sec. 3313.6029. No teacher shall be required by a policy of any state agency, school district, or school administration to affirm a belief in the systemic nature of racism”

"Sec. 3313.6027. (A) No state agency, school district, or school administration shall require a teacher of history, civics, United States government and politics, social studies, or similar subject areas who is employed by the board of education of a school district to discuss current events or widely debated and currently controversial issues of public policy or social affairs"

HB 327: Prohibits public schools, state agencies, colleges, and universities from offering teaching, instruction, or training on “divisive concepts” or accepting private funding to promote such concepts. Violations of the bill would result in the withholding of funding to school districts, and would require that infractions be considered with respect to faculty tenure and retention decisions. The bill has a list of concepts related to race, sex, nationality, color, and ethnicity that it defines as divisive and prohibited.

How are LGBTQ+ or BIPOC students meant to feel supported and heard in classroom settings that are trying to erase the learning of their own culture? How can students of marginalized backgrounds succeed if a system seeks to compress and water down their history? 

K-12 students deserve to learn about the complex history of the United States. They deserve to learn about diverse marginalized communities. The fight against these bills should not become politicized as it is not a matter of politics. This is a fight against the two House Bills which are violations of every K-12 students right to a fair and equal education.