Kamala Harris' niece Meena in her article for the Washington Post, published on Tuesday, explained how parents can teach their kids that the United States was founded by “white supremacists” as American schools increasingly resist adopting a broad implementation of Critical Racial Theory (CRT).
“It's time all American families start taking time at home to discuss the injustices that shaped our nation's past, the work still to be done in our present, and the values that should define our future. Titles that teach kids to value — not just tolerate — each other's differences are certainly important,” Meena Harris claimed.
She said many US educational institutions are reluctant to “offer a curriculum or environment that combats racism,” while “simply reading representative books to our kids isn't enough.”
“Parents need to share narratives with their children that are historically accurate and anti-racist,” she said. “They need to tell stories that say what politicians are afraid to, and what so many teachers now can't: that this country was stolen from Indigenous people, founded by white supremacists, and built on the backs of enslaved people — and that racism shapes our society to this day."
Harris recommended certain books to parents, including those of Project 1619 founder Nikole Hannah-Jones. She pointed out that the pandemic has heightened the need for “safe, quality education.”
The issue of adding CRT to school curriculums has faced strong resistance, both from school personnel and parents, who believe that the theory is akin to “brainwashing” and revises US history to present it in an extremely negative light.
Meanwhile, most elite K-12 private US schools have adopted antiracism training, including CRT, according to a recent study. The adjustment of school curriculum with regard to racial issues, at the same time, has been banned in some states, including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Idaho and Tennessee.