Our recent national elections are behind us, but sadly our divisiveness is not.
Every week in letters to the editor and on social media there is anger, misinformation, fear, name calling and polarization.
People no longer see community members, friends, neighbors or even relatives. They see adversaries.
Suspicion and mistrust have replaced cordiality and friendliness. Lines have been drawn - literally.
Even a pandemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of people worldwide has been politicized. Masks and vaccines have been weaponized. Science has been ignored and pundits revered.
Teachers and school board members have been harassed and threatened for supposedly teaching something that has not and is not being taught in secondary schools - Critical Race Theory. Critical Race Theory is a framework of analysis at the college level that has been around since the 1970’s when it was introduced by civil rights scholars to examine the intersection of race and law to challenge mainstream approaches to racial justice.
Unfortunately, the label has been dredged up as a tool to spread unwarranted fear and hysteria by equating it to Black Lives Matter, an equally misunderstood social justice movement, by those who believe that equity education will somehow threaten or shame white children.
If people would put aside labels and take a good hard look at what equity education is really about, they would see that it is a means for all students to be part of a learning environment where they can feel safe and respected, regardless of their color, religion, disability or sexuality.
It is not about race. Nobody is trying to elevate one group over another or to shame anyone on the basis of history.
I think there is one thing everyone should be able to agree on - we all want what is best for our children - and the only way to get there is on a level playing field.
It’s about fairness.
It’s about civility.
It’s about kindness.
We need more of this.
Susan Miller
Warwick