First, right-wing conservatives banned the 1619 Project. Now, they’re white-washing K-12 textbooks and banning social justice topics.

 

John,

Ten months ago, Color Of Change warned textbook publishers about the attacks on Black history, but none of them listened. In the months since, Florida conservatives have doubled down on their efforts to erase Black history and culture from the classroom. In March, the Florida legislature introduced legislation that limits how educators may teach about “race, privilege, oppression and the founding of America.”1 And in April, the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) rejected almost half of the math textbooks for the upcoming school year, including one statistics title that discussed “racial profiling in policing” and “discrimination in magnet school admission.”2 

Right-wing conservatives are distorting and white-washing our history. Yet McGraw Hill, Cengage, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt have refused to publicly commit to teaching accurate Black history in their textbooks, no matter what. Instead, these textbook publishers have sat idle as our children are robbed of the truth about what Black people have experienced in this country. John, if the world’s largest textbook publishers don’t take action, who will? 

With the start of classes right around the corner, Color Of Change is fighting to ensure that our children have access to a high-quality education—one that prioritizes truth over comfort. But we’re going to need your support to keep right-wing conservatives out of our education system and hold textbook publishers accountable to students everywhere.

 DEMAND THAT TEXTBOOK PUBLISHERS #DEFENDBLACKHISTORY FROM RIGHT-WING ATTACKS!

Accurate representation matters. When Black children see themselves reflected in the classroom lessons and textbooks, learning becomes more meaningful and their potential for academic success soars.3 But when right-wing conservatives become involved in K-12 education, all children suffer. Black children remain marginalized in the classroom, subject to lessons that invalidate their lived experiences. All children are robbed of the truth about what Black communities have endured on this soil, and how our valuable contributions have impacted this country and the rest of the world. 

More recently, the Florida DOE banned social studies lessons that place Black history and Black people “in the center of our national narratives.”4 Now, John, you and I both know that Black history is U.S. history. But unless textbook publishers take action, right-wing conservative extremists will continue to erase Black history from school curriculums and deny our children the truth about our lived experiences as well as our brilliant contributions. Join Color Of Change in demanding that textbook publishers #DefendBlackHistory by: 

  • Making a public commitment to reject any proposed changes to their K-12 textbook content that would erase or marginalize Black history and culture. 
  • Investing in ongoing efforts to #DefendBlackHistory, such as bookmobiles or advertising campaigns. 
  • Where applicable, ceasing all support of the political groups and candidates behind the efforts to ban Black history from the classroom.

TAKE ACTION

Until justice is real,

Jade Magnus Ogunnaike and the Color Of Change Team

References:

  1. John Kennedy, “DeSantis signs into law ‘Stop WOKE Act’ to restrict race discussions in Florida,” Tallahassee Democrat, April 22, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/358927?t=9&akid=53477%2E4731121%2EWcWFbM. 
  2. Andrew Atterbury, “Mystery solved? Florida reveals why it rejected math books over critical race theory,” Politico, May 5, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/358928?t=11&akid=53477%2E4731121%2EWcWFbM.
  3. Tarcia Lasha Hubert, “Learners of Mathematics: High School Students’ Perspectives of Culturally Relevant Mathematics Pedagogy,” Journal of African American Studies, vol 18, 324-336 (2014), https://act.colorofchange.org/go/358929?t=13&akid=53477%2E4731121%2EWcWFbM. 
  4. Andrew Atterbury, “Florida wants to avoid critical race theory and ‘social justice’ in social studies texts,” Politico, May 20, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/358930?t=15&akid=53477%2E4731121%2EWcWFbM.