One of the reasons CRT has become a major social issue goes back to the USSR in 1956

At the 1956 Supreme Soviet, Nikita Khrushchev gave a speech about the state of education in the USSR. To paraphrase, he stated that education needs to be controlled to maintain Communism and that history teachers are the most dangerous teachers that need to be watched and controlled the most.

Fast forward to 2021 and all the screaming being done about CRT. Khrushchev's idea was simply that history teacher not only teach facts, but perspective and interpretation of those facts. History, in fact all humanities classes, are an exercise in data analysis. You are given the data and the students need to synthesize their values based on data.

If you control the data, you get the logical result of "continuing an narrative," even if the narrative is wrong and facts can prove it. You censor out those facts, similar to how China censors Tiananmen Square and censored nearly everything about Arab Spring. The idea is to keep up a narrative that is simple and nationalistic.

One of reasons students, especially young students, say the pledge is because it is expected of them. While no school can force anyone to say it, the inherent social pressure to conform and not be looked at as weird is fierce in the elementary grades. By the time a student is in middle school, it's ingrained. "Give me a child until he's seven and he's mine forever" was something Hitler said. And it is completely true.

History and humanities classes are under attack because people like me force students to challenge a narrative and nationalistic jingoists wrapped up in American exceptionalism find this a threat to their entire identity. As the play Inherit the Wind said: "Murdering your mother is not as original as murdering an old wife's tale. Challenge one of their fairy tale notions and they'll bring down the wrath of God, Brady, and the state legislature on you every time."

As we approach Thanksgiving, I'm faced with either continuing the narrative in class about why the Puritans came to the new world. The national approved narrative is that they were escaping religious persecution.

The ACUTAL reason is that the Puritans were a radical band of Calvinists that rejected the Anglican Church and were trying to foster a rebellion against Queen Elizabeth to install a Calvinist monarch. Elizabeth viewed them as a poisonous religious cult trying to break up English unity. So she gave them an option: "leave or die." The Anglican Church was not persecuting them. Their actions forced the hand of the Queen to act to prevent this "cult" from fostering civil war as the Calvinists were gaining strength through word, actions, and violence.

That's the true story of the Pilgrims. But no history textbooks will say that because of reasons already stated in this post.

Education is under attack with CRT claims simply because narratives are being challenged. As a result, those trying to outlaw it are doing exactly what Khrushchev started in 1956. It is amazing to me that those who are doing this now screamed how awful the USSR was in the 150s. Same tactics, same ideas, same hooey.

Quick history lesson for those who don't understand what is happening now

Another DUer posted "what doomed the Weimar Republic." There is more to it that what the DUer said and I felt, as a renegade history teacher who refuses to teach or even use history textbooks in his class, I should expand on that idea.

What the DUer said is absolutely correct. The Weimar Republic came down harder on the Sparticist rebellion than they did on the Kapp Putsch or the Beerhall Putsch. They even allowed the Freikorp to enforce laws, albeit selectively.

But what also doomed the WM was the fact that those out to destroy it used the laws and democracy to destroy it. Instead of violently taking over, those that would destroy it used elections and media to justify their actions and doom the WM.

In class, I teach that if a group wants to take over, there needs to be four conditions met:
1: Widespread fear (anti-vax crap)
2: Widespread poverty (some of the most Trumpian states are the poorest in the country)
3: Widespread anger (Trumpers)
4: Widespread hopelessness (voter apathy in saying they are all the same)

As soon as those conditions are met, all a despot needs to do is four simple things:
1: Blame the current government for the condition (Democrats)
2: Find a scapegoat (Foreigners, liberal elites, BLM, CRT, Jews)
3: Portray yourself at the answer to all your problems (Republicans)
4: Manufacture and exploit a crisis (Supply Chain, COVID19, refugee crisis, etc)

Works like a charm every time in history. Remember, for a despot to take over, it's all about appealing to emotion, not intellectualism.

Intellectual arguments die in the face of emotional reactions.

Just to update you Re: My wife and Sen. Kelly's involvement

I can sadly report that his office did the absolute bare minimum work.

They went onto the NVC website, submitted a email, waited two months for them to reply, then sent me the NVC's form letter.

It's the exact same thing that happened to me. One would think that an elected official would have more sway and pull than to use the same avenues that regular people need to use.

I will assume Sen. Kelly's office will do what Raul's office did. . .consider this matter closed and ignore my requests for help from now on. Sen. Kelly's office is as bad as Raul's, and Sen. Kelly proved to me he also doesn't care when the the US Government abuses its citizens.

With that, I thanked DFW for trying and helping, but I know now what I need to do. There is no more hope for my case. I am officially ending my campaign at this moment.

His Southern Arizona leader lied to me when he said he would do everything to reunite my family and his head of constituent services is lazy for doing the bare minimum work.

Tonight, my wife's grandmother went into the hospital for the third time in two months. The only thing that got her through her grandfather's passing was me being there with her. She spent all night sobbing that she needs me, but knows I need to support my family so I am waiting for job offers before I go back.

I have to go to work in 2.5 hours and I am in absolutely no condition to go to work today. I don't know if I can put on a big fake smile and teach today. I am so dead and lifeless right now. I literally care about nothing.

School closures haunt Democrats as frustrated parents cast their votes