Garden State Times

FULL STATEMENT: Recently, our country has been witnessing an unprecedented attack on our education system, seeking to ban and silence any discussion on issues impacting marginalized communities. YWCA Northern New Jersey (YWCANNJ) is alarmed by this recent surge in attempts to remove curricula and literature featuring Black and LGBTQ+ topics from our schools. Just this year, attempts to remove books from schools and libraries have reached our communities of Glen Ridge and Washington Township in New Jersey. Nationally, states such as Florida have begun to adopt more draconian measures to censor the teaching of African American and LGBTQ+ studies.

At YWCANNJ we believe Black history is American history; we believe LGBTQ+ history is American history and attempts to remove them from our schools are un-American. Educating the public, particularly our children, on these topics creates more equitable, understanding, and empathetic communities. To build this future, we must confront the uncomfortable realities of our past if we are to leave a better world for our children and their children. Fundamental to our work is the ongoing fight against systemic racism and oppression, and it is these values that led us to offer R.A.C.E (Raising Race Conscious Children) training series that provides tools to engage in deep thinking around race and identity for school administrators, teachers, parents, and children.

We urge the public to stay aware and speak out if these attacks come to their communities. Only by doing so can we continue to bend the arc of history toward justice and ensure American history is inclusive and reflective of all. 

Original source can be found here.