Show up and Make Your Voice Heard!
Tomorrow evening (Thursday, October 20) at 7:00, the Fairfax County School Board will hold its regular monthly public meeting in the auditorium at Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Road, Falls Church.
On the agenda is a resolution whose title should send chills up your spine: “Teach Truth FCPS.”
Recall that in George Orwell’s renowned 1984, there were four Ministries: Peace, Love, Truth and Plenty. The purview of the Ministry of Truth encompassed news, entertainment, education and the fine arts. It was responsible for replacing historical events with propaganda and relied on “Newspeak” language to reinforce that propaganda.
So when the Fairfax County School Board prepares to vote on a “Teach Truth Resolution of Support for Educators and School-Based Administrators,” grab a copy of 1984. Here is a link to the resolution: https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=CJXVUR827AD7
Note that the proposed document supports educators and administrators only. The essence of the document is to protect them from criticism while they go about implementing “necessary curricular improvements [that reflect] truth about historic and systemic injustice … and … as they develop and implement antiracist, equity- and justice-based classroom resources and pedagogy.” There you have it. Newspeak.
But just what defines systemic injustice, racism, anti-racism and equity? Surely you can tell by now that those undefined words are used as cudgels to force conformity of thought, attitude and speech. They also are used to foment anti-Semitism, especially in school settings.
Time is of the essence! Please contact School Board members before Thursday’s meeting and urge them to vote NO on the resolution. Don’t be fooled by the flowery language that pays homage to academic rigor and a caring, inclusive culture. This resolution is about silencing criticism of teaching that has less to do with academic rigor and more to do with political indoctrination.
School Board members and their emails follow:
* Karen Keys-Gamarra [email protected] * Abrar Omeish [email protected] * Rachna Sizemore Heizer [email protected] * Megan McLaughlin [email protected] * Elaine Tholen [email protected] * Melanie Meren [email protected] *Tamara Derek Kaufax [email protected] * Dr. Ricardy Anderson [email protected] * Karen Corbett Sanders [email protected] * Karl Frisch [email protected] * Laura Jane Cohen [email protected] * Stella Pekarsky [email protected] * Dr. Michelle Reid, Superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools [email protected]
