By Ray Cardello for September 27, 2021 Season 6 / Post 47

There are many directions this post can take, but first, I have to ask a primary question. Why do people fill the spots on local school boards if the education and well-being of the students they impact is not their focus? Why do folks get onto a school board and then do everything in their power to aid in the indoctrination of children? We had many examples here in Exeter during the last school year. I wrote about all of the adverse actions by our local board on this blog. These actions brought out the parents’ anger in Exeter, but I fear this show of public animosity towards the board had little impact. Instead of any actions taken against the faculty and staff who performed these acts, a new Director of Inclusion and Diversity was hired. You cannot make this stuff up.

Last year, school boards and activist groups around the country turned on Dr. Seuss and the literary works that children had learned to read for years. It was decided by these groups, not the parents, that these books were too racist and dangerous for young minds. They were stripped from school library shelves, bookstores, and even Amazon. Dr. Seuss was not just banned but erased. The empty shelves had to be filled with more suitable material, and some schools decided books on gay sex and pedophilia filled the gaps.

Recently, a Texas school board was uncomfortable when an angry mother disclosed the various sexually oriented books available in the local high school and middle school libraries. She was concerned that the available books not only discussed sex but gay sex and pedophilia. The board attempted to silence her but stopped when the audience insisted that the mother speak. These boards are autonomous, and most local governments have no oversight of the school administration. This lack of control is creating a dangerous and out-of-control situation. The obvious question is who had the books placed in the library and to what end?

As academic scores fall and our standing on the international rankings falter, our school boards are more concerned with inclusion, justice, and diversity than math and science skills. As grades fall, the solution of many boards is to do away with grading systems. We no longer push our gifted students to higher levels. We instead hold them back to lessen the gap between the best and the challenged. I recently wrote about the mistake we made pushing an entire generation to a college degree rather than allowing them to choose their path. We are now creating another bad situation for our children by neglecting their minds to concentrate on their Woke souls. We have not learned from our past.

These controversial boards are waking a sleeping giant. These boards work for the parents and students but have lost track of this hierarchy. They have assumed control, and the product they are producing is not adequate. Who decides that Green Eggs and Ham is bad but Out of the Darkness is suitable for children’s minds? When the actions of these boards are uncovered, there is no accountability. There are no suspensions or terminations. There are claims of first amendment rights and the protections the boards require to be able to ram through their agendas.

It is incredible that these boards will not teach the Constitution but will use it to save their jobs. The education system in this country is one of the most potent entities. We have witnessed a generation of indoctrination and hatred for our country that started in colleges and universities. The movement has infiltrated the primary grades, but the work is not done. Not until capitalism and patriotism are replaced with socialism and Woke will they rest. Let us conservatives and all lovers of this country never let the day come when these groups say job done.