NH’s Teacher Loyalty Bill Would Restrict Discussion of US History in Schools

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Just a year after New Hampshire lawmakers first introduced a bill banning the teaching or discussion of “divisive concepts” like systemic racism, another bill will be debated during this debate. legislative session that would push these restrictions further.

The bill, HB 1255, is titled the “Teacher Loyalty Act” and seeks to prohibit public school teachers from promoting any theory that portrays the history of the United States or its foundation in a negative light, including the idea that the country was founded on racism. The bill updates a Cold War-era law that prohibits educators from defending communism in schools and adds additional bans on defending socialism and Marxism.

“No teacher shall defend any doctrine or theory which promotes an account or negative portrayal of the founding and history of the United States of America in New Hampshire public schools which does not not include the global context of now outdated and discouraged practices, ”the text of the bill reads. “Such a ban includes, but is not limited to, the teaching that the United States was founded on racism. “

The bill’s main sponsor, Representative Alicia Lekas ​​(R-Hudson), said in a telephone interview on Friday that she wanted to present the bill to the legislative session in 2022 because she was not disagree with the way history is taught in public schools today.

“Too often I meet too many students who don’t know anything about the real history and stuff like that, because teachers spend too much time indoctrinating students on political matters, which I don’t think teachers should do, ”Lekas ​​mentioned.

Lekas ​​believes that while slavery was a negative chapter in American history, the historical context of the time is not sufficiently taken into account when taught to students.

“Slavery was a terrible thing, but a lot of people don’t know that slavery happened all over the world, that’s the framework you have to teach,” Lekas ​​said. “If you want to teach the founding of the country you have to teach it in its proper setting so that you know what was going on in the rest of the world so you have a better idea of ​​why people did the way they did. made. “

The bill was co-sponsored by Republican Rep. Keith Ammon (New Boston), who introduced last year’s Divisive Concepts Bill, and fellow GOP representatives Glenn Cordelli (Tuftonboro), Erica Layon (Derry) and Tony Lekas ​​(Hudson).

Last year’s Division Concepts Bill was amended and ultimately passed by a state budget addendum, signed by Governor Chris Sununu, which also included the country’s first abortion ban. State. The Education Department has now set up a web page where parents can report a teacher who could indicate that a group of people are “inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously.”

Megan Tuttle, president of the National Education Association New Hampshire, the state’s largest teachers’ union, spoke out against the bill in a statement Friday, calling it “anti-freedom.”

“Educators in New Hampshire want to provide every child with an accurate, quality education that conveys honesty about who we are and integrity in how we treat others,” said Tuttle. “Some politicians want to censor the truth of our history and pass laws prohibiting learning from the mistakes of our past and erasing leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr. who stood up against racism and changed our country for the better. “

Deb Howes, president of the American Federation of Teachers of New Hampshire, said in a telephone interview on Friday that she was concerned about the impact of the bill on a teacher’s ability to facilitate classroom conversations about historical subjects.

“This is yet another attempt to intimidate teachers, to force them to remain silent,” Howes said. “It is clear that some of our lawmakers do not want public school teachers to approach honest discussions about race in schools, which is doing all of our students a disservice. Race exists, racism exists and if we ignore the fact that it has been part of our history and still exists now, we are not doing our job as educators.

Reinforced by the new Division Concepts Act, officially called the “Right to Non-Discrimination in Public Workplaces and the Education Act,” Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut last month created a page Web that links to a form where parents and students can report teachers for alleged discrimination under the new law. NEA-NH and AFT-NH strongly opposed the move and Howes called on Edelblut to step down, saying he had declared a “war on teachers”.

Devon Chaffee, executive director of the ACLU of New Hampshire, also criticized the bill on Friday, calling the legislation “Orwellian.”

“We are better as a state and a community when we can have difficult conversations and learn from them – which is why it is so important that our students have a complete picture of American history that includes to both the good and the bad, ”Chaffee said in a statement. “This bill would unconstitutionally prevent New Hampshire teachers from covering up America’s legacy of racism and slavery, building on the disturbing trend we’ve seen this year to put teachers at risk of professional discipline and lawsuits for teaching on these difficult subjects. “

State Representative Alicia Lekas ​​said the additional ban on defending socialism and Marxism in addition to the pre-existing ban on promoting communism stems from a desire for specificity.

“We are not a socialist country and socialism hurts so much,” Lekas ​​said. “You look at all the socialist countries in the world and all the evils caused to them… I hate to see our country fail and I hate to see us move in directions that history tells us to fail. “

When asked if she thinks the bill might have a chilling effect on the teaching of parts of ancient American history, Lekas ​​said she didn’t believe it would, as long as educators teach “appropriate history”.

“It doesn’t stop a teacher from teaching history, it just says if you want to teach it you have to do a good job,” Lekas ​​said. “You can’t teach one-sided history. “

The bill will be heard by the House education committee in January.

These articles are being shared by The Granite State News Collaborative partners as part of our Race and Fairness Project. For more information, visit collaborativenh.org.

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