Arizona School Board Under Fire For BLM Curriculum

As someone who’s resided in Arizona for most of my life, I’ll tell you that it is a deeply confusing place. You’ll meet some of the most left-leaning folks you could ever know, and then turn around and see a house decked out in Trump flags. This conflict plays out in our state politics on all levels. Take, for instance, the Scottsdale Unified School District, which is currently under fire for a new social studies curriculum that acknowledges Black Lives Matter and protests against police.

According to ABC 15, Arizona State Superintendent Tom Horne gave a press conference on Wednesday to challenge a social studies textbook that will be used in Scottsdale schools for the upcoming school year. Maricopa County Sheriff Jerry Sheridan, as well as Jim Hill, the president of the Maricopa County Colleges Police Association, were also in attendance as they felt the curriculum was anti-police. Horne called the curriculum a “DEI-oriented textbook,” and labeled the school board as “woke.” 

Why?

Because the textbook acknowledges that over the last decade, we experienced events ranging from NFL players like Colin Kaepernick protesting police violence, to the racial uprisings in 2020 stemming from the murder of George Floyd. Apparently, simply talking about these things is seen as “anti-police.”

These are all events that have occurred in modern American history. History shouldn’t be ignored because you don’t like it or agree with it. As a millennial, my economic mobility has been stifled due to the long-lasting effects of Reaganomics. Do I like it? No. But thanks to history class, I know exactly who to blame for the socio-economic hellscape that is current-day America. The more you know, you know? 

Scottsdale Superintendent Scott Menzel pushed back against Horne’s claims. “To label them woke without having ever read what was the 1,250 pages in the textbook is a problem from my perspective,” Menzel told AZ Family.

“We would never adopt a curriculum that was anti-police,” said Menzel. “We do have historically situations where some people argue that we should defund the police. Here in Arizona we had people who removed school resource officers. That’s not something that we would ever contemplate, but from a historical perspective our students should be able to wrestle with why someone might have made that argument.”

Wow, a curriculum designed to allow students to consider all the different viewpoints they coexist with on a daily basis? You know what? I take it back, that does sound like indoctrination to me.  

The curriculum had already been discussed by community members during the May board meeting where it was approved, and for the most part people seemed on board with it. 

“Is it messy? Yes. Is it uncomfortable? Yes. You may not like the fact that George Floyd is brought up, but Derek Chauvin is serving time for murder. So, if you have a problem with that being discussed and that is somehow anti-police, then I don’t know what to tell you,” one community member said during the meeting. 

Another community member read from a petition signed by 100 students, alumni, and parents in Scottsdale approving the new curriculum. “Now more than ever, it’s vital to provide students with a comprehensive education rooted in trust and fairness. The adoption in this curriculum is a critical step in ensuring all SUSD students receive the education they deserve,” she read.

Not everyone is on board, though, as Scottsdale resident Karen Martinson stood beside Horne during the press conference. “As a Black lady, I don’t want my son learning about Black Lives Matter because it is too violent,” Martinson said. Man, wait till she finds out about what they were doing at Klan rallies. 

Horne has said he will report the curriculum to the federal government as he believes that the school is violating an agreement not to have DEI in K-12 classrooms. It really feels like I’m watching what likely happened in the ‘70s and ‘80s when schools began teaching about the Civil Rights Movement of the ‘60s in my own backyard. Arizona, what a strange place you are. 

SEE ALSO:

Texas Is The Latest State To Censor Higher Education Over DEI Concerns

UNC Asheville Dean Of Students Fired For Pro-DEI Comments