The records of a school in Louisville, Kentucky record this as a representative conversation that both Black and White teachers had with students, where the teachers asked the questions and the students were encouraged to express themselves freely:
TEACHER: Now children, you don’t think white people are any better than you because they have straight hair and white faces?
STUDENTS: No, sir.
TEACHER: No, they are no better, but they are different, they possess great power, they formed this great government, they control this vast country. . . . Now what makes them different from you?
STUDENTS: Money!
TEACHER: Yes, but what enabled them to obtain it? How did they get money?
By 1873, so many Black people were elected to South Carolina state legislature that they became the majority. Under their leadership and their new legislation, South Carolina for the first time had free public schools. By 1876, there were 70,000 Black children going to school. What's more, many thousands more White children were going to school than before.
As violence has come to surround Russian youth, many seem to have become more violent themselves.
"When the boy, identified by prosecutors as Timofey K., arrived at his school, located outside Moscow, he went to the bathroom to put on his gear, which he’d branded with neo-Nazi symbols and racist slogans. Then he filmed himself patrolling the hallways and asking people, at knifepoint, what nationality they were. Several gave the wrong answer, and Timofey stabbed them. Most survived, but a 10-year-old boy from a Tajik family did not..."
Purity Culture has devastated Americans for decades but Erica Smith has been helping people shed the shame and disinformation around sex and purity. Andrew and Erica delve into the harm of purity culture—it’s racism, bigotry, obsession with virginity—but also talk about how people can recover and find their true self and live healthy, happy, sexual lives. Purity Culture is a Christian Nationalist ploy to breed more straight, white American Christians.
Throughout the 2024 election, we all heard about the dangers of Project 2025, yet somehow it’s worse than we imagined. Trump continuously said he didn't know anything about it (but he did), and nearly a year after his swearing in, we've seen a huge portion of it already implemented. We're joined by The Atlantic’s David A. Graham, author of the new book, “The Project: How Project 2025 is Shaping America.”
In just 138 pages, David covers the entire 920-page document. He explains how many of the authors of Project 2025 saw Trump's first term as a failure because he was stopped from accomplishing his core goals - like building the border wall and repealing Obamacare. The answer was to create a shadow administration that would guide his policy decisions if he made it back to office.
We run through a variety of issues that are being influenced by Project 2025, including immigration and border security, education, and trade. And we discuss the most influential figure, Russell Vought, current Director of the Office of Management and Budget. One of his main priorities? Inflict pain on government employees.
And, Al remembers his friends, Rob and Michele Reiner.
"Our mission is as big as it is simple: Every child reads," she said. "Not some, not most. Every child reads."…
"Today, we're 44th in the country in fourth grade reading," she said. "Just 4 in 10 fourth graders in Michigan read at grade level, and almost one in three Michigan students tests below average, and that's what I would call a crisis, and the vast majority of the people of our state would agree."
Trump and Mike Johnson are denying food to needy Americans and the story is being covered everywhere, but nobody is covering this: denying SNAP benefits is about advancing Christian Nationalism. Andrew explains. Plus, Florida politicians discover that vouchers are not just for Christians and they’re pissed off; and judges in Texas can now refuse to marry LGBTQ couples. Why? Because god.
Hemant Mehta covers the Florida vouchers kerfuffle. Interview:
Evolution and some geologic history explained while she counters silly creationism / intelligent design arguments from Doug Wilson and the Answers in Genesis / Ken Ham people.
An important point she makes is that Doug Wilson and his followers not only hold these unscientific beliefs, but that they are actively engaged in building up networks of schools that will indoctrinate children with these beliefs instead of real science.
"I'm very disheartened by the shortage of quality men," she added. "Men my age are less educated, their social skills are abysmal, and now they're running into the arms of Trump and 'incel' forums."…
After covering state/church news, we report on the “war-mongering” Christian nationalist rhetoric at Charlie Kirk’s memorial.
Then, we hear distinguished attorney Richard Katskee speaking at the Scopes Trial Centennial conference about his role in the 2005 lawsuit in Dover, Pa., defending the teaching of evolution in the public schools.
We are joined by Randi Weingarten, the President of the American Federation of Teachers, to discuss her new book, Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the Future of Democracy.
In the book, Weingarten details how there has been a systematic demonization of teachers and public education in America. She argues that one of the pillars of public education is critical thinking, which prevents fascism from flourishing in society – so fascists (and wannabe fascists) hate it.
We explore a variety of topics facing schoolchildren and their parents today, including charter schools, artificial intelligence, phones in schools, and the treatment of LGBTQ+ students.
We also discuss Trump’s proposed elimination of the Department of Education, attacks on teachers unions, and how we may have kept the schools closed for too long during Covid-19.