August 21, 2002
If there were ever any doubt that the National Education Association, the dominant teachers union in America, has gone off the deep end, that doubt should evaporate by the end of this column. As we bear down on September 11 th , the NEA has issued a set of lesson plans for its teachers to follow. They urge teachers to be careful not to “suggest any group is responsible.” Not suggest any group is responsible? How about al Qaeda? How about Muslim extremists?
“Blaming is especially difficult in terrorist situations,” the NEA says, “because someone is at fault. In this country, we still believe that all people are innocent until solid, reliable evidence from our legal authorities proves otherwise.” Do what? Did we wait for our ‘legal authorities' to tell us Hitler was a bad guy? I don't think so. Again, this falls in line with the politically correct tripe fomented by the NEA in recent years.
Although they urge us not to blame anyone, they reserve that right for themselves. They blame America. Part of the lesson plan urges teachers to “discuss historical instances of American intolerance,” so that we avoid “repeating terrible mistakes." They go on to cite “internment of Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor and the backlash against Arab Americans during the Gulf War” as “obvious examples.” A backlash against Arab Americans during the Gulf War? There was a backlash against Iraqis during the Gulf War. I wonder why? As for other Arabs, the Saudi Arabians and the Kuwaitis were our allies!
Fortunately for our children, teachers are now biting back. The vast majority of the teachers interviewed by the Washington Times were completely dismissing the suggested lesson plans from the NEA. Instead, they planned to talk honestly about September 11 th with their students, not shying away from placing blame if and when the conversation steered in that direction.
At a recent NEA convention, the buttons they wore on their lapels evidenced the political agenda of those in attendance. One sported a picture of President Bush and a picture of a monkey and read, “Separated at birth.” Others mocked God and believers. Understand that the majority of teachers don't buy into this garbage. It's time they took a stand by dropping their NEA membership. Many teachers are afraid to do so thinking that they'll lose their benefits and protection. That's a lie that's been perpetrated by the NEA to keep its members onboard.
One alternative is the American Federation of Teachers, which you can find at AFT.org. Their take on September 11 th is decidedly different than the NEA's. “ Lesson plans should be based on the facts,” the AFT writes in a press release, “including what is undisputed about the terrorists who are to blame for the attack on America and whose values are anathema to ours. Unfortunately, many well-meaning lesson plans avoid explicit judgment about the aims and character of the terrorists of 9/11, and AFT believes that anything that implicitly seems to blame America for these attacks is wrong.” Now we're talkin'. A teachers union that stands up for America.
Another alternative in Tennessee is the Professional Educators of Tennessee (PET), found at teacherspet.org. They tend to whine a little too much about funding but are certainly a clear alternative to the NEA.