By Terry Farish, InDepthNH.org
On Tuesday, the House Education Committee voted down four bills that would have repealed or altered the recently enacted law on the Prohibition on Teaching Discrimination.
Rep. Charlotte DiLorenzo, D- Newmarket, was the primary sponsor of one of the bills, HB1090, a bill that would have repealed the “divisive concepts” law passed as a trailer to the budget last June. The law is also referred to as HB2 as it was included in that bill.
DiLorenzo said, “‘Divisive comments’ is what Trump called it. The language is based on an executive order that Trump put forward.”
HB1090 would have repealed the law and replaced it with a provision stating that “teachers cannot be held civilly liable for teaching the historical or current experiences of any group protected under the state’s anti-discrimination laws.”
The law includes the statement: “Violation of this section by an educator shall be considered a violation of the educator code of conduct that justifies disciplinary sanction by the state board of education.” ACLU-NH, NEA-NH and others have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the law.
“The threat to teachers’ careers is real,” DiLorenzo said. “I thought about being a substitute teacher. But then I thought no. Not now. Not for $80 a day.”
Here are the other bills killed by the Education Committee.
HB 1607 would have required the state board of education to ensure there is no unlawful discrimination in any approved school tuition program, public school, nonpublic school, or educational service that receives public funds. Megan Tuttle, NEA-NH President, testified in favor of it, saying, “… the language that was ultimately inserted into HB 2 included … the requirement that Education Service Providers “Comply with all state and federal anti-discrimination laws”. HB 1607 makes it crystal clear that the State Board of Education, our board of directors for education in New Hampshire, must ensure that the protected classes listed in the bill be shielded from discrimination.”
HB 1638, also proposed by Rep. DiLorenzo, would have modified the procedure for grievances for certain violations of the ban on teaching discrimination. The bill sought to begin the grievance process locally, by first submitting a complaint at the local level to the superintendent of the SAU. Under the current law, “A student or parent who believes that they have been subject to discrimination may file a complaint with the New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights; a complaint with the New Hampshire Office of the Attorney General; or may file a civil claim in superior court to seek damages or declaratory or injunctive relief.”
HB1576 would have repealed the Right to Freedom from Discrimination in Public Workplaces and Education; and Prohibition on Teaching Discrimination.”
In the hearing on Tuesday, Rep Alicia Lekas, R-Hudson, said about repealing the law, “I do not understand what the issue is. I think it’s a good piece of law.
“We can’t get out of laws because people spread misinformation about them. It’s the spreading of misinformation that makes teachers terrified.”
Rep. Lekas continued, “Our law is very clear. It is about anti-discrimination. We don’t want kids to be discriminated against.”
To that Rep. Sue Mullen, D-Bedford, replied that “Teachers are chilled by the prohibition against the free exchange of ideas.”
In response to the Education Committee vote to kill the bills to repeal HB2, Rep. David Luneau, D-Hopkinton, Deputy Ranking Democrat on the House Education Committee, said,“Today, Republicans once again doubled down to prevent honest instruction about race, sex, gender, and, yes, literal historical fact to students in public schools, while allowing private and religious schools funded by taxpayer dollars to teach without this draconian restriction.”
Luneau continued, “This censorship forces teachers to worry about avoiding certain broad curricular topics at the risk of steep penalties to their professional careers. Censoring our teachers is a threat to democracy, harms our education workforce, and damages our state’s future.”
In an attempt to abate confusion about the Prohibition on Teaching Discrimination law, the Department of Justice offers guidance on how educators are to apply HB2 in the classroom.
“In short,” the DOJ site states, “do not teach that a person or a group is inherently oppressive, superior, inferior, racist, or sexist. Teach and treat all equally and without discrimination.” Clarity hasn’t been found by many. Organizations filing lawsuits say the law is vague, yet the law enables grievances to be filed against an educator and possible disciplinary action to be taken. Again – from the DOJ site:
“Can an educator’s credential be disciplined for teaching these prohibited subjects?
Yes. If an educator is found to have discriminated against an individual or identified group, it is a violation of the educator code of conduct and may result in disciplinary sanction by the state board of education.”
The Hillsborough County Chapter of Moms for Liberty is a group “dedicated to unifying, educating and empowering parents to defend their parental rights at all levels of government.”
Rachel Goldsmith founded The Hillsborough County Chapter of Mom’s for Liberty. After the repeal bills were killed in the House Education Committee by the majority Republicans, Goldsmith said she valued the vote of the Education Committee. She said in an email,
“Moms for Liberty Hillsborough County opposes Critical Race Theory in all its insidious forms. We have heard from teachers, staff, parents, and students all over New Hampshire that the Anti-Discrimination Act in HB2 has been effective in holding public schools accountable. Curriculum and teacher training modules that force children to identify themselves or peers as oppressed or oppressive will not be suffered by Granite Staters.”
Moms for Liberty, Hillsborough are not alone.
Bans on teaching discrimination are proposed in many other states and are being tracked by organizations such as Pen America. Chalkbeat, covering education, reports that 36 states are attempting to restrict the teaching of racism and bias. But 17 states are seeking to expand the teaching on racism and bias. Maine is listed on both.
A Senate bill, SB304, sponsored by Sen. Jay Kahn, D-Keene, would also repeal and replace the Freedom from Discrimination in Public Workplace and Education law. At a hearing for the bill in January, a motion of “inexpedite to legislate” – or kill – the bill was made, but the vote was delayed. A vote on that motion in scheduled for Thursday.
Contact Terry at terryfarishnh@gmail.com