Garbage: ‘Anti-Racism’ sham must be rejected
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Bravo, to West Virginia state Senator Bill Hamilton, R-Randolph, who understood better than too many of his colleagues that the purported "Anti-Racism Act" is a hateful and dangerous piece of legislation that should not make it to the governor's desk.
"This is wrong, and I'll be voting no," Hamilton said on the Senate floor Wednesday.
His bravery and decency did little good, however, as the state Senate voted 21-12, essentially along party lines, to send Senate Bill 498 to the House. Those 21 should be ashamed of themselves.
They know perfectly well the intent of this bill, even if it is dressed up in pretty language to disguise the damage it will to our students and the state as a whole. Listening to the practiced defense of a bill clearly designed to do precisely the opposite of what it presents, AND to claw control of what happens in classrooms away from teachers and into the hands of lawmakers, is nauseating.
State Sen. Richard Lindsay, D-Kanawha, was absolutely right:
"No one teaches history to make someone feel discomfort," he said. "This bill comes from weakness. It's a snowflake bill, and I urge a no vote."
Fear-driven attempts to drive socio-cultural norms backward in West Virginia simply must not succeed.
Should members of the House of Delegates need any more reason to toss this garbage in the trash, they can look to Senate Education Chairwoman Patricia Rucker's gleeful endorsement of the reporting procedure for noncompliance with this nasty bill.
"… If I do hear of an instance I now know what to do," said Rucker, R-Jefferson.
Chilling, isn't it?
Delegates, you know what this bill is. You know the disservice it does our teachers and students. You know the damage it will do to our reputation as a state. You know it is wrong.
Give it the "no" vote it deserves.