LGBT rights in the USA today...

[iris lilies]

Agreed, jp1. I can be outraged by past injustices (to groups, individuals, the planet) and I can hate what my forefathers did, but I'm not such a snowflake that talking about it makes me feel all sorts of guilt. And I can be outraged about the forces that drove my forefathers out of their ancestral homes without expecting the ancestors of our "victimhood" to feel guilt. That said, some of them profited greatly from the acts that drove others out, and I don't think its a bad idea that some of those profits go to bettering conditions for people in general or for the groups that were wronged. I do think acknowledgement of past wrongs makes it easier to move forward, as opposed to pretending it never happened.

Of course. Reasonable people understand that learning about past injustices is stretching, not weakening, our own understanding of the world and making good our society.

However, some of the school exercises in these “learning” efforts are far from benign.

Living in an epicenter of racial politics as as I did, I attended many race awareness sessions through work and neighborhood unity efforts and etc. Those were 20+ years ago and the content of the sessions have changed, and not for the good.

[ApatheticNoMore]

The issue was AP classes in African American history I believe. Of course that's legitimate, there is pretty much no reason but racism to think that's not a perfectly legitimate class and a legitimate AP class (not all schools are going to offer it because not all schools offer all AP classes). Dude wants to run for President on black history is not real history. Oh well, I welcome President Newsom then, I was not sure his very slick laid back Californian demeanor plays nationwide, but it has to play better than running on: "black people aren't real people". Talk about stuff that doesn't play nationwide (I hope. It doesn't play nationwide right?).

[Alan]

The issue was AP classes in African American history I believe. Of course that's legitimate, there is pretty much no reason but racism to think that's not a perfectly legitimate class and a legitimate AP class (not all schools are going to offer it because not all schools offer all AP classes). Dude wants to run for President on black history is not real history. Oh well, I welcome President Newsom then, I was not sure his very slick laid back Californian demeanor plays nationwide, but it has to play better than running on: "black people aren't real people". Talk about stuff that doesn't play nationwide (I hope. It doesn't play nationwide right?).

I think a Florida statute states "classroom instruction and curriculum may not be used to indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view", and elements of the proposed class seemed to violate that standard. Perhaps if the activism portions are removed the proposed AP class will be approved and people will have to mis-represent something else to justify their fear of DeSantis.

[ApatheticNoMore]

The particular point of view is probably slavery and segregation is bad. I don't fear DeSantis (I'm not black, anti-black sentiment isn't directed against me), I hate him. And yes of course he's running on overt racism.

[Alan]

The particular point of view is probably slavery and segregation is bad.

You could probably look that up, but the result may not satisfy the persistent itch.

[frugal-one]

You could probably look that up, but the result may not satisfy the persistent itch.

Explain.

[Alan]

Explain.

If you choose to believe something not necessarily true, yet use that falsehood as a basis for your preferred belief, you'll probably not be motivated to research it for fear of losing your basis of indignation, and the itch will remain.

[catherine]

If you choose to believe something not necessarily true, yet use that falsehood as a basis for your preferred belief, you'll probably not be motivated to research it for fear of losing your basis of indignation.

My first thought with your "persistent itch" theory is that if you are one to seek justice you will have that persistent itch until justice is served. I'll buy that. But I don't think anyone needs to do a lot of research to understand that slavery and segregation is bad. I don't see that point of view as indoctrination.

[Alan]

My first thought with your "persistent itch" theory is that if you are one to seek justice you will have that persistent itch until justice is served. I'll buy that. But I don't think anyone needs to do a lot of research to understand that slavery and segregation is bad. I don't see that point of view as indoctrination.

Neither do I. But anyone who suggests that as being the issue with the AP class in question should really look outside their biases, even if it's painful.

[catherine]

Neither do I. But anyone who suggests that as being the issue with the AP class in question should really look outside their biases, even if it's painful.

I will do some research on that. But I do not have a problem with any relevant topic that sheds light on the Black experience in the context of African American studies.

Forbes says that these firebrand words, "Intersectionality" and "Black queer theory" are topics that would be part of a subtopic in the curricula. I still don't know what that means exactly, but I do think that they are convenient words to politicize.