A proposed bill in Arizona aims to ban social justice and ethnic studies courses in public schools. The bill has been heavily criticized as an attack on academic liberty as well as a cultural war against marginalized groups.
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Introduced by Republican State Representative Bob Trope, House Bill 2120 would ban public school classes, events and activities that “promote division, resentment or social justice toward a race, gender, religion, political affiliation, social class or other class of people.” Another passages even appears to make an association with studies of social justice with the “promotion of the overthrow of the United States government.”
Classes “designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group” or those that “advocate solidarity or isolation based on ethnicity, race, religion, gender or social class instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals” are targeted by the legislation.
“Reading between the lines, it's obvious the bill is targeting groups that our legislature would rather not exist: Black Lives Matter, LGBT, undocumented, Dreamers,” Brendan Mahoney from the Phoenix Human Relations Commission, told AZ Central.
“It really puts a target on people of color and various academic fields that have emerged out of struggle,” Rashad Shabazz head of justice and social inquiry at Arizona State University, told the Guardian.
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The bill is an extension of previous laws that have banned classes for Native Americans and the teaching of genocide and oppression. The new bill allows classes which teach an “accurate history of any ethnic group,” but what is deemed “accurate” remains vague.
The law comes as many other progressive courses have been banned and criticized around the U.S. Critics of the bill are also concerned that as well as being an attack on academic freedoms, it could also ban charity activities which work within social justice.