Georgia Gov. signs bill into law banning teaching that US is ‘fundamentally racist’
Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia has signed a controversial bill into law which bans discussions of racism in classrooms.
HB 1084, known as the "Protect Students First Act," is part of a broader effort by conservative lawmakers across the US to limit how race is taught and discussed in schools.
The new law prohibits teaching that "the United States of America is fundamentally racist."
Despite support from Republican lawmakers, the bill has faced sharp criticism from Democrats, students and teachers among others.
On Thursday, the ACLU of Georgia argued that parents in the state want their children to be taught accurate curricula.
"Whether you are white, Black, Hispanic or Asian— most parents want their children to learn about history the way they learn about math— as accurately as possible" Andrea Young, the group's executive director, said in a statement.
The Democratic Party of Georgia issued a statement, saying the legislation is about politics.
Many opponents claim the bill targets books that are "authored by people of color,” Democratic Rep. Bee Nguyen had said.
"From the moves to censor what’s taught in classrooms, to the efforts to make it easier to ban books and to attack the parent-teacher partnership, it’s clear that for Kemp, this is about politics and inserting a partisan agenda into our classrooms," wrote Elaine Padgett, a Forsyth County parent running for the local Board of Education.
Also, Maurice Brewton, a US history teacher in Georgia, previously said, “It’s time for us to be able to have these uncomfortable conversations candidly.”
Brewton added, “We don’t want to continue to push the conversation back and make the next generation have to deal with it.”
Georgia is not the only US state that has taken such a contentious measure. Other state legislators have either passed or proposed initiatives censoring education in classrooms.
Law makers in Mississippi passed a bill prohibiting the teaching of “critical race theory” in elementary schools, high schools, and colleges throughout the state.
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