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[CrazyDude]

It is the call for a review of the Advanced Placement curriculum for U.S. history classes to ensure that teaching materials present positive aspects of U.S. history and its heritage. According to the wording of the proposal, teaching materials should "promote citizenship, patriotism ... (and) respect for authority" and not "encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard of the law."

"I understand that they want to take out our very important history of slavery and dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki because it portrays the U.S. in a negative light," said Casey McAndrew, a high school senior.

Banned Book Week: 10 of the most challenged books of 2013

Ben Murky, a high school junior, said, "The censorship of U.S. history is wrong, and I think it's pretty communist."

The protest followed walkouts by students on Monday and a protest Friday, when at least 50 teachers called in sick, according to KDVR.

"I think it's time we hear from the kids on how it's impacting them, because it is, and it's very scary for them what's happening here," parent Andrea Stevens said.

Jefferson County Superintendent Dan McMinimee tried to stem the outrage by stressing that no changes in the curriculum have been finalized.

"I think some students think this is a done deal when, in fact, it was a discussion by our board based on a resolution that one of our board members brought forward," McMinimee said. "There was a vigorous discussion on Thursday evening. It was tabled. "

McMinimee has visited several high schools in the past few days and met with large and small groups of students to answer their questions and listen to "their legitimate concerns," he said in a statement.

"I respect the right of our students to express their opinions in a peaceful manner. However, I do prefer that our students stay in class and in their buildings," McMinimee said.

The school board members have not responded to a request for comment.

Julie Williams, the board member advocating the history review, issued a statement after the protests, according to KDVR.

"Balance and respect for traditional scholarship is NOT censorship," she said. "Again we believe that exposure to the curriculum itself, not inflammatory rhetoric, will convince most parents that a review committee is a very good idea."

School board President Ken Witt said the goal is to give all of the community more of a say in what's taught in classrooms.

"The idea is to make certain that we are expanding community involvement and community voice in curriculum," Witt said. "That's not censorship. That's the opposite of censorship. This is exactly what these students would want, I hope."

Judging by the hundreds of students who are trying to make their voices heard, it doesn't appear that kind of community voice in curriculum is what they want.
"They want to take away our curriculum in U.S. history," said Ava Koppschlager, a sophomore."We deserve to know everything that went on."

Meantime, the Twitterverse has been having a field day with the #JeffcoSchoolBoardHistory hashtag, poking fun at what some believe is an attempt to whitewash what students are taught about U.S. history.

"The back of the bus is where the air conditioning is, so no one ever really complained," wrote a Twitter user named Alan Franklin.

"The Vietnam war was a great victory for the US and the free North against communists in the South," Jarret Herrmann added, also on Twitter.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/24/living/censoring-history-schools-denver-protest/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

 

[BeatResetsTheWorld]

And all the minority students awkwardly look at one another in silence

 

[Gordon Shumway]

"The back of the bus is where the air conditioning is, so no one ever really complained," wrote a Twitter user named Alan Franklin.

I laughed pretty hard at this bullshit..damn. Also, wut iz slaveries?

 

[NEO0MJ]

It's pretty sad how so many countries lie about their history.

 

[Laughing Black]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/24/living/censoring-history-schools-denver-protest/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Why protest?

Celebrate with banned book week?

 

[Aquamarine]

It is the call for a review of the Advanced Placement curriculum for U.S. history classes to ensure that teaching materials present positive aspects of U.S. history and its heritage. According to the wording of the proposal, teaching materials should "promote citizenship, patriotism ... (and) respect for authority" and not "encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard of the law."

Oh god.

Good on the kids for resisting this.

An impartial teaching of USA History isn't "encouraging or condoning" anything, just like how watching a violent film doesn't "encourage or condone" you to murder people.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

An AP curriculum that doesn't teach about slavery or the atomic bombings of Japan? How are they even supposed to pass the test?

 

[Ferrio]

Ignorance is strength.

 

[teruterubozu]

I guess Howard Zinn's book is out of the question.

 

[Angelus Errare]

"If we stop talking about it, it'll go away!"

 

[Laughing Black]

I meant reading/watching banned materials for a week. Whoops

 

[Banworthy]

Well, there is a lot worth censoring, I'll give them that.

 

[IISANDERII]

The propoganda machine is spooling up. Glad to see awareness and resistance.

 

[Angelus Errare]

Well, there is a lot worth censoring, I'll give them that.

Like what?

 

[hwalker84]

Yep I've heard many stories from local parents that schools are removing negative information from history classes. One person told me they basically removed WW2 and cannot discuss Hitler or the Nazi's. WTF is going on Murica?

 

[Banworthy]

Like what?

Like them electing a Muslim Atheist Communist president.

 

[i-Lo]

Like them electing a Muslim atheist communist president.

I can't tell if this is legitimate trolling or some inane joke...

 

[Banworthy]

I can't tell if this is legitimate trolling or some inane joke...

Is there any difference between those options?

Well, it's basically both of them. More like the latter as no one would be stupid enough to get trolled by that.

 

[J10]

"If we stop talking about it, it'll go away!"

How the fuck does Hiroshima go away? Why are we surrounded by morons?

 

[Siegcram]

I can't tell if this is legitimate trolling or some inane joke...

The whole account is a joke.

 

[WeAreStarStuff]

No propaganda in the land of the free.

 

[maquiladora]

Sounds like it is a proposal from a single member of the board. Smh, probably one of those right-wing idiots cheerleading Putin's war on truth and information. Hopefully the board doesn't approve this. Good on CNN for giving it exposure.

 

[njean777]

Like them electing a Muslim Atheist Communist president.

There is a oxymoron here, how can you have a muslim atheist?

 

[Aquamarine]

There is a paradox here, how can you have a muslim atheist?

Dress up in a Burqa and walk around campus with a megaphone praising Satan, obviously.

 

[ponpo]

I'm surprised they even consider the atomic bombings bad. I thought it was usually spun to be fairly positive like 'we had to do it so save 500,000 US lives!'

I'd be surprised if they focused on internment at home or firebombing cities or things that are harder to spin positively.

 

[njean777]

Dress up in a Burqa and walk around campus with a megaphone praising Satan, obviously.

Yeah but then you would be a satanist, you are still worshipping/praising a deity of some sort.

 

[Banworthy]

There is a paradox here, how can you have a muslim atheist?

Apparently I was mistaken. Someone is able to be trolled by the world's stupidest troll(which wasn't even meant to be a troll, just an inane joke). Proof is in my last post.

 

[nhlducks35]

There is a oxymoron here, how can you have a muslim atheist?

Ask Obama

 

[Gattsu25]

There is a oxymoron here, how can you have a muslim atheist?

The president's been accused of being a radical black baptist (a christian sect),a sleeper cell muslim, and an atheist.

Logic flies out of the window sometimes. Just roll with it.

 

[Amir0x]

All you guys should watch The Revisionaries and cry yourself to sleep about the future of education in this country

 

[iPorygon]

It may just be me but the bad parts of US history certainly wasn't sugarcoated: Interment camps, Slavery, Trail of Tears, Vietnam, The whole nine yards. Also I don't know how a school can do that since a good part of the AP test is about the bad parts of U.S. history.

Then again I was schooled in liberal New England so I can't speak for the other parts of the country.

 

[kess]

It is the call for a review of the Advanced Placement curriculum for U.S. history classes to ensure that teaching materials present positive aspects of U.S. history and its heritage. According to the wording of the proposal, teaching materials should "promote citizenship, patriotism ... (and) respect for authority" and not "encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard of the law."

 

[njean777]

Apparently I was mistaken. Someone is able to be trolled by the world's stupidest troll(which wasn't even meant to be a troll, just an inane joke). Proof is in my last post.

I was just saying it was an oxymoron, no need to call me stupid. Usually trolling or correct trolling ends up with the Troll inciting anger, and I am far from angry.

 

[Banworthy]

I was just saying it was an oxymoron, no need to call me stupid.

I didn't call you stupid. Read my posts again. The "stupid" quote was posted earlier than you made your brilliant contribution to the discussion. Whether or not you are stupid is left for you to work out. Of course, I myself think that you are a rather intelligent person.

 

[A Fish Aficionado]

It may just be me but the bad parts of US history certainly wasn't sugarcoated: Interment camps, Slavery, Trail of Tears, Vietnam, The whole nine yards. Also I don't know how a school can do that since a good part of the AP test is about the bad parts of U.S. history.

Then again I was schooled in liberal New England so I can't speak for the other parts of the country.

Same in California.

 

[Volimar]

Walkouts are the best protests for high school students. Even those who don't care about the issue take part to get out of school.

 

[ZaCH3000]

Same in NJ and I graduated honors. AP went way more into depth.

 

[Derwind]

Good on those kids and teachers for fighting against that.

Its one thing to take out certain sections in the curriculum in order to cover what you can. However, purposefully taking out sections of history to not show your country in a negative light... fuck that.

 

[Gattsu25]

Good on those kids and teachers for fighting against that.

Its one thing to take out certain sections in the curriculum in order to cover what you can. However, purposefully taking out sections of history to not show your country in a negative light... fuck that.

Agreed 100%

I'm heartened to hear that students are doing this.

 

[Lubricus]

It may just be me but the bad parts of US history certainly wasn't sugarcoated: Interment camps, Slavery, Trail of Tears, Vietnam, The whole nine yards. Also I don't know how a school can do that since a good part of the AP test is about the bad parts of U.S. history.

Then again I was schooled in liberal New England so I can't speak for the other parts of the country.

That's the difference between blue states and red states. Colorado used to be red, still a lot of conservatives in local offices.

 

[BitStyle]

Good on those kids and teachers for fighting against that.

Its one thing to take out certain sections in the curriculum in order to cover what you can. However, purposefully taking out sections of history to not show your country in a negative light... fuck that.

This. It really isn't doing your students any favors, because they'd most likely be corrected in college anyway.

 

[John Rabbit]

That's the difference between blue states and red states. Colorado used to be red, still a lot of conservatives in local offices.

what?

i was schooled in Arizona and we learned about all of those topics.

 

[stufte]

what?

i was schooled in Arizona and we learned about all of those topics.

Exactly. My children are schooled in Colorado and they learn about these things. I was schooled in Nebraska and I learned these things. This is one school district with over-reaching school board members. It has nothing to do with redness or blueness of a state, it only has to do with crazy people in charge of things they shouldn't be in charge of.

 

[Syph Medwes]

And all the minority students awkwardly look at one another in silence

what?

 

[Gattsu25]

what?

i was schooled in Arizona and we learned about all of those topics.

I was schooled in NY and FL and the FL US history texts never mentioned slavery or internment camps

 

[Oersted]

"The Vietnam war was a great victory for the US and the free North against communists in the South," Jarret Herrmann added, also on Twitter.

Paging Kajigger

 

[wanderingprostheyltite]

I was schooled in NY and FL and the FL US history texts never mentioned slavery or internment camps

Why does this not surprise me?

 

[water_wendi]

I was schooled in NY and FL and the FL US history texts never mentioned slavery or internment camps

Stuff like this blows my mind. Nevada here and from 6th grade on no punches were pulled.

 

[B-Dubs]

I was schooled in NY and FL and the FL US history texts never mentioned slavery or internment camps

I am shocked, shocked I say.

 

[adamsappel]

My 7th grade American History book ended on a happy note, with US troops being sent to Vietnam to help the South Vietnamese quickly stem the tide of communism. This was in 1978, mind you.