Commentary: Threats to Freedom in US Schools Are on the Rise
May 19 marked the final date Americans could submit public comments on a new rule of “Proposed Priorities — American History and Civics Education,” set forth by the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, a division of the U.S. Department of Education.
This priorities document will be used in future years to award grant money from the federal government (provided by taxpayer dollars and doled out through Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona) to deserving teachers and programs for the purpose of developing “culturally responsive teaching and learning.”
Catholics in the United States have a long history of civic action and a vested interest in improving student acquisition of historical literacy and the skills needed to participate in democracy.
While we suffered discrimination for many decades of America’s growth — read Douglas Brinkley’s excellent biography of Blessed Michael J. McGivney for a small sampling — it was precisely the structures of the American system that freed Catholics and other minority groups to expand their freedoms, so that we, their heirs, can live our faith in public and raise our families according to our consciences.
