Remembering Martin Luther King Jr

 

The Editorial Board at Issues and Insights observed that today marks

the 55th anniversary of the day the murderous James Earl Ray took the life of Martin Luther King Jr. The civil rights leader should be allowed to rest in peace, but he is being slain yet again, this time by a mob of mediocre minds with rock-bottom character that seeks to overturn his life’s works.

In what is widely acknowledged as his greatest speech, King dreamed that his “four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character,” that “one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.”

. . .

He couldn’t have been clearer about his vision for a color-blind society. And in the 40 years that followed his death, our country moved in that direction, year by year, heart by heart.

But much has changed. The woke mob, critical race theory, and the DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) movement have reopened a once-gaping, raw wound that had almost closed. Consider just a few of the many instances in which our “leaders” and institutional luminaries not only reject King’s teaching but actively try to return this country to an era of segregation and ugly, unapologetic bigotry. . . .

The editorial concludes:

Locally, teachers, administrators, and school boards are wrecking the MLK legacy. If they’re not telling white students that they are racist, should be ashamed of themselves, and indulging radical speakers who believe schools are “spirit murdering” black children, then they’re lowering standards to aid minorities, fully consistent with the soft bigotry of low expectations.

And then there are the DEI shysters such as Robin DiAngelo, a white woman who has grown fabulously wealthy making progressive rich whites feel guilty for sins they haven’t committed (while simultaneously being disappointed by them), and telling “people of color” they “need to get away from white people and have some community with each other.”

None of this is what Martin Luther King Jr. lived or died for. But it’s a pot of gold for grifters, race hustlers, status seekers, political hacks, and just plain mean people. At least we know who they are.

Full editorial is here.

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Another misnomer: “Civics Secures Democracy Act”

More A F Branco cartoons at Creators.com

John Fonte at American Mind reports on yet more initiatives to erase America’s past history and culture with progressive ideology.  Here’s his closing:

Legislation currently before Congress would implement this woke revolution in history-civics education. It would implement the teaching of Critical Race Theory and de-legitimize America’s Founders, our principles, and our stories. The legislation is the Civics Secures Democracy Act introduced by Democrat Senator Chris Coons of Delaware and Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas.

The bill provides six billion dollars over six years in competitive grants to states, local school districts; nonprofits; and to university schools of education for teacher training. It requires a national test on history-civic knowledge that would be developed by educators chosen by the Biden Administration.

. . .

Across our nation, in promoting civic education, many in the Republican and conservative establishment seek “consensus” and “common ground” with the woke progressives. But what common ground is there with those who defame the founders as “enslavers”; portray America’s story as one of “systemic racism”; and reject the principle of human equality exemplified in the Declaration of Independence in favor of “equity” as manifested in the ubiquitous dogma of DEI?

Instead of playing a subordinate role in phony “consensus” projects dominated overwhelmingly by the progressive Left, conservatives should develop solid, accurate, patriotic curricular materials as a distinct alternative to the progressive narrative. This is already happening with Governor DeSantis’s reforms in Florida and the work of National Association of Scholars.

 At the end of the day, we must realize that this is not a simply an academic argument, or merely a policy dispute over history and civics education, but a life and death regime struggle over the American Way of Life.

Read the entire column here. This legislation, the Civics Secures Democracy Act, may be vulnerable to phone calls to Congress from outraged voters.  Go here to find your representative and here for your Senators.

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VDH: Totalitarian Wokeism

 

Victor Davis Hanson knocks another one out of the park. His “Wokeism is A Cruel and Dangerous Cult” at American Greatness begins:  

Wokeism has been described by its critics as the omnipresent use of race—and to a lesser extent, gender—to replace meritocracy and thus ensure equality of result. What follows from implementing that ideology are reparatory actions to reward those of the present by atoning for the injustices done to others in the past. 

Some see it as an update of 1960s cultural Marxism fads. Others scoff that it is just a return to 1980s-style political correctness. 

Still more see it as the logical successor to 1990s-type race, class, and gender obsessions—albeit with a shriller and more dangerous Jacobin, Soviet, and Maoist twist. Wokeism’s hysteria also invites comparisons to the Salem witch trials and McCarthyism. 

But few have described wokeism as the cruel creed that it is. 

Wokeism’s natural logic is to destroy the lives of people of both genders, of all races, and—if need be—those of every age, all to leverage an otherwise unworkable ideological agenda. It is nihilist and destroys everything it touches. It tears apart foes and friends alike, whether by fueling media-driven hatred of Donald Trump or faux-deification of the disaster that is now Joe Biden. 

One of the take-away quotes: "Equity in our Orwellian world is not equality, but payback." The full article is here. Recommended.

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Mark Steyn: "not a serious country"

 

Mark Steyn is my favorite author and columnist.  I used to enjoy his appearances on Fox News, but since I crossed Fox off my list many months ago, I have to be satisfied with his written commentary.  Yesterday, his commentary was decidedly pessimistic, but I could not see where he was getting it wrong.  Here are some excerpts:

. . .

The biggest-selling book with American conservatives right now argues that the answer to all of the above [litany of government-caused problems] is "constitutionalism". On the other hand, the radio host Jesse Kelly says:

We're not a serious country and we're not a country that will be around much longer.

I incline to the latter view myself.  At this point, conservative complaceniks tend to trot out Adam Smith: "There is a great deal of ruin in a nation." But not this much - not Covid lockdowns and open borders, Afghan "translators" and Haitian "refugees", Big Tech and Big Trans, BLM and CRT, ID for the IHOP but not for the voting booth, China as America's manufacturer and America's loan shark...

. . .

To go back to that Jesse Kelly line, "we're not a serious country": A nation where a pasty privileged pajama boy can demand the ruination of his professor because he traumatized the class by making them watch a Laurence Olivier performance is too unserious to survive, and doesn't deserve to.

If the Constitution is the bulwark against madness, then it has already failed; if "capitalism" is the bulwark against express-elevator descent into full-blown madness, the only thing holding that up is the chimera of the US dollar's status as global currency.

. . .

"Land of the free and the home of the brave"? Both are conspicuous by their absence.

The full column is here.  Grim, but highly recommended.

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Hillsdale College's 1776 curriculum

 

Mike LaChance at Legal Insurrection has a good report, even though it’s via Politico:

Note how the liberal site Politico frames Hillsdale College as “Christian” and cites its “deep ties” to the Trump administration. That aside, this curriculum looks pretty good, and it’s free.

Trump ally Hillsdale College pitches 1619 Project counterweight

A small Christian college with deep ties to the Trump administration released a “1776 curriculum” on Wednesday, the latest push to continue former President Donald Trump’s mission to create a “patriotic education.”

The nearly 2,400 pages of curriculum from Hillsdale College in Michigan includes lessons on the founding of the U.S., the Civil War and the American government. The college has long been in favor of a civics education that focuses on America’s strength rather than its ills and supported curriculum that is less critical of the U.S. Larry Arnn, the college’s president, led the Trump administration’s 1776 Commission, which Trump appointed members to during his last few weeks in office. It was later disbanded by the Biden administration but continued to meet.

The curriculum marks another turn in the national debate over teachings that focus on racism’s role in America’s past and present.

The left-leaning bias in this report is pretty obvious, but it still gets out the mission of the 1776 curriculum.  “Lessons on the founding of the U.S., the Civil War and the American government” – all good when not infected with Critical Race Theory and America-bashing.

For the Hillsdale 1776 curriculum website; click here. Share it with your local school boards, staff, family members ….

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Martin Luther King Jr. and Critical Race Theory

 

MLK memorial in DC

A report at Big League Politics presented some information about MLK and Critical Race Theory – information that was news to me.  Here’s an extract:

A popular talking point from conservatives is that critical race theory (CRT), the racist pseudo-historical doctrine being pushed throughout society by the Radical Left, would be rejected by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. if he were alive today.

However, King’s own daughter vehemently disagrees with that assessment.

. . .

Conservatives may be triggered by Bernice King’s comments but they are historically accurate. The facts show that MLK Jr. was a communist-affiliated huckster who paved the way for blood libels like CRT to take root in America and destroy the country. What few people understand is that many of MLK Jr.’s seminal speeches and writings were either plagiarized or written by Soviet pawn and Communist Party USA organizer Stanley Levison. Levison knew that the notion of civil rights for minorities would eventually be expanded by left-wing attorneys to tear at the Bill of Rights and make America completely unrecognizable. His vision has now been realized.

. . .

“There are forty million poor people here, and one day we must ask the question, “Why are there forty million poor people in America?” And when you begin to ask that question, you are raising a question about the economic system, about a broader distribution of wealth. When you ask that question, you begin to question the capitalistic economy,” King Jr. said in an Aug. 1967 speech, demonstrating his incredible ignorance on basic economics.

. . .

Before conservatives stopped trying to understand the truth behind issues, they understood that MLK Jr. was a communist figure promoted by the globalist establishment to undermine American unity. This is why former president Ronald Reagan had serious reservations about creating MLK Jr. Day as a national holiday in the 1980s.

. . .

In recent years, MLK Jr.’s lascivious exploits have been revealed to the public as well, showing him as being involved in countless orgies with prostitutes, coercing his own parishioners into illicit sex affairs and laughing as a colleague raped a woman in a hotel room. The fact that this individual has been deified by conservatives, most of whom refuse to address any of the facts about MLK Jr.’s true character, shows exactly why the movement has failed to conserve much of anything over the years.

Read the full article here.  (I added the link to the Wikipedia page for Mr. Levison and silently corrected the spelling.)  

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My Kind Of Pushback

Brett T at Twitchy:

‘I won’t be pathologized for being White’: Man resigns from school district over ‘white privilege’ training

This is quite a letter to the Manchester School District, aka “The Temple of Equity,” from Daniel Concannon, who addresses his resignation letter to “Human Wedgie McGee,” the program director of something called the 21CCLC Program.  . . .

 

And here it is:

Click to embiggen or go here to read on the Twitchy link.  Wow.  Posted here for inspirational purposes.

# # #

Stopping Critical Race Theory in Ohio schools

 

From our friends at Ohio Value Voters:

You can show your support of stopping Critical Race Theory in Ohio by attending the proponent testimony hearing this Wednesday at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus:

[map here]

 

HB 327 Proponent Testimony in opposition to Critical Race Theory in Ohio

COMMITTEE: State and Local Government

CHAIR: Scott Wiggam

DATE: Wednesday, June 23, 2021

TIME: 3:00pm

ROOM: Room 121

OVERFLOW: Room 122

 

H.B. No. 327

Rep. [Diane] Grendell, Rep. [Sarah] Fowler Arthur

Prohibit teaching, advocating, or promoting divisive concepts

2nd Hearing    Prop/IP 

# # #

 

Protect Ohio Children Coalition

 This announcement just arrived from our friends at Ohio Value Voters:

Announcing Our NEW Protect Ohio Children Coalition Website & Indoctrination Map!

Do you know if Critical Race Theory (CRT), Comprehensive Sex Education (CSE), or Social Emotional Learning (SEL), is being taught in your local school system?

We are here to help. Today we are announcing a powerful new tool for Ohio. Go to ProtectOhioChildren.com and you will find step-by-step information for stopping indoctrination in your local school district. You can also find out if your school district is listed in our new indoctrination site map and see specific evidence that we have uncovered recently, and over the last four years. You can also subscribe to our YouTube Channel to watch local school board meetings where citizens are taking back their schools! When you find harmful materials, please send us your anonymous tips so that we can analyze the information, and update the site map. All tips will be kept completely confidential. Upon request, one of our region leaders can consult with you about best-practices for stopping the radical agenda in your community. The Protect Ohio Children Coalition is a state-wide grassroots volunteer organization dedicated to watching schools and school boards across Ohio. When schools take steps to bring indoctrination into the classrooms, we are here to shine light on the darkness of dangerous and radical materials being presented to children across the State of Ohio. Diane Stover Program Director Protect Ohio Children Coalition

SIGN OUR PETITION: STOP INDOCTRINATION IN OHIO SCHOOLS

Meet Our Regional Co-Chairs

‌ Jonathan Broadbent North Region jon@protectohiochildren.net

Cathy Pultz Central Region cathy@protectohiochildren.net

Jen Burr South Region jen@protectohiochildren.net

‌

The Protect Ohio Children Coalition is facilitated by Ohio Value Voters, Inc.

What is Critical Race Theory?

 

Our household subscribes to Imprimis, the newsletter of Hillsdale College.  Every month, we receive their publication which features an article adapted from a lecture on campus.  It is always good value.  This month’s edition features Christopher F. Rufo’s insights into Critical Race Theory.  It is an eye-opening discussions, and here is a very short extract.  

Critical race theory is an academic discipline, formulated in the 1990s, built on the intellectual framework of identity-based Marxism. Relegated for many years to universities and obscure academic journals, over the past decade it has increasingly become the default ideology in our public institutions. It has been injected into government agencies, public school systems, teacher training programs, and corporate human resources departments in the form of diversity training programs, human resources modules, public policy frameworks, and school curricula.

There are a series of euphemisms deployed by its supporters to describe critical race theory, including “equity,” “social justice,” “diversity and inclusion,” and “culturally responsive teaching.” Critical race theorists, masters of language construction, realize that “neo-Marxism” would be a hard sell. Equity, on the other hand, sounds non-threatening and is easily confused with the American principle of equality. But the distinction is vast and important. Indeed, equality—the principle proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence, defended in the Civil War, and codified into law with the 14th and 15th Amendments, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965—is explicitly rejected by critical race theorists. To them, equality represents “mere nondiscrimination” and provides “camouflage” for white supremacy, patriarchy, and oppression. 

. . .

On the grassroots level, a multiracial and bipartisan coalition is emerging to do battle against critical race theory. Parents are mobilizing against racially divisive curricula in public schools and employees are increasingly speaking out against Orwellian reeducation in the workplace. When they see what is happening, Americans are naturally outraged that critical race theory promotes three ideas—race essentialism, collective guilt, and neo-segregation—which violate the basic principles of equality and justice. Anecdotally, many Chinese-Americans have told me that having survived the Cultural Revolution in their former country, they refuse to let the same thing happen here.   

Read the rest here.

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A local success story to punch back against Critical Race Theory

 

From our friends at Ohio Value Voters:

On March 6th we alerted you to mandatory Critical Race Training at Beachwood High School coming soon on March 11th. Yesterday, on March 8th, in a packed school board meeting, outraged citizens held nothing back when they spoke to the Beachwood School Board. Watch Jonathan Broadbent expose the school board of quietly changing policy that gives teachers a new right to "express their opinions" instead of the current policy that has been in existence since the beginning of the school system: WATCH HERE The rest of the meeting grew in intensity as tax-payers and parents spoke truth to power in the following block-buster school board meeting video: MUST WATCH VIDEO Below is our Email from March 6th A group of parents in Beachwood Ohio are recommending that all parents keep their children home on 3/11/21 or otherwise remove their children from upcoming "mandatory" Critical Race Training. Every study including "1776 Unites" shows that "Critical Race Theory" leads to MORE racism and division. Parents are urged to attend the Beachwood Board of Education meeting on March 8, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. to voice your concern regarding this mandatory training.   The Beachwood Board of Education meets in regularly scheduled meetings on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 7:00 pm, in the Fairmount Community Room, 24601 Fairmount Boulevard, Beachwood, Ohio. 44122 phone: (216) 464-2600 Click this link for more information: What is Critical Race Theory? A good example of local citizen involvement.  # # #