An Iowa teacher bragged about ways she has been circumventing the state’s ban on critical race theory-themed curriculum. Governor Kim Reynolds, a Republican, signed a law, HF-802, that prohibits the teaching of critical race theory in schools this past June. Reynolds called the curriculum, which includes works from radical leftists such as Ibram X. Kendi, “indoctrination not education.”
One teacher recently bragged to her colleagues about ways she has been circumventing the ban, however. Petra Lange, who described herself as “a secondary educator at a predominantly white high school in a suburban district”, tells students the topics she isn’t allowed to teach then encourages questions on said topics, which includes CRT. “I literally put the law in front of them,” she said of HF-802 at an online forum billed as “UnBan Anti-Racism Education In Iowa.”
“One of (the questions) straight up was a sticky note that says ‘is the United States systemically racist?’ And I was like now that would be a fascinating conversation that now we can have because you’ve asked,” Lange gleefully stated. Lange went on to say that HF-802 is a symbol of “systemic oppression.”
Iowa teacher proudly explains how she is circumventing the Critical Race Theory ban.
Instead of teaching CRT, she reviews the CRT concepts that are called out in the law, and encourages her kids to ask questions about the concepts.
This is her CRT ban workaround. pic.twitter.com/U7fzmJqDw2
— Mythinformed MKE (@MythinformedMKE) September 18, 2021
HF-802 bans teachings that an individual is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously, and that an individual should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment solely or partly because of an individual’s race or sex. It also bans curriculum that teaches how either the United States or the state of Iowa are fundamentally racist. Iowa is one of a handful of states that have banned critical race theory-themed curriculum while the debate still rages in others.