Photo Credit: Melea Gaskins

In the past four years education in the United States has changed. From making improvements to having to adapt during the pandemic. Some changes made to education in America are not entirely made because of emergencies or tragedy but because of the presence of CRT. CRT or critical race theory is the recognition that racism is more than the result of individual bias and prejudice but is also systemic, directly affecting housing, education employment, and healthcare. According to the Legal Defense Fund, America’s premier legal organization fighting for racial justice, ‘’Critical Race Theory recognizes that racism is embedded in laws, policies and institutions that uphold and reproduce racial inequalities.” According to the Article “What is Critical Race theory and Why is it Under Attack” by Stephen Sawchuk;  A common question asked regarding CRT in the American education system is “Is ‘critical race theory’ a way of understanding how American racism has shaped public policy or a divisive discourse that puts people of color against white people?” This question is the root of some of the discourse that occurs between Liberals and Conservatives as well as a reason parents feel that CRT does not belong in their child’s curriculum. Other parents are on the opposite side of the spectrum in full support of CRT being taught out of necessity for growth in the country.

Most recently both books supposedly containing CRT and the AP course African American Studies Have been banned from schools in America. According to an article titled “Read the AP African American Studies Curriculum by Nicole Chavez the course is ”Designed to be taught over 28 weeks, the course covers 79 topics that range from early African kingdoms to how Jim Crow laws impacted African Americans after Reconstruction as well as the achievements of Black Americans in science, music, and art.”

There are roughly 60 AP African-American studies courses across the United States. An article from Education Week” AP African American Studies: How Other States Are Responding After Florida’s Ban”, pointed out questions about the AP course that are a major factor in the disagreement between whether or not this course should be taught. Republicans argue that the course goes against Florida’s laws regarding restrictions on lessons about race and racism, while those who disagree with his point argue that the course needs to be taught in order to avoid watering down Black history.

In January of 2023 Governor DeSantis of Florida, a Republican who is expected to run for president, announced he would be banning the course. This resulted in major backlash from Florida’s community. According to a New York Times article titled “The College Board Strips Down Its A.P. Curriculum for African American Studies” State officials managing education in Florida claimed the course wasn’t historically accurate as well as did not comply with laws around race and how it was taught it in the state, essentially justifying its removal.

In a New York Times article titled “The College Board Strips Down Its A.P. Curriculum for African American Studies” Sharon Courtney, a high school teacher piloting the course in New York State, said the backlash frustrated her, as every teacher tweaks and refines a new curriculum.In a New York“You’re critiquing something that isn’t finished,” she said. Wait until I cook the meal.

Approximately twenty-five hundred books have been banned from high schools. A drastic increase in book banns is apparent from the years 2021-2022. Books across the United States are being banned for various reasons apart from the presence of Critical Race Theory. According to CBS  News, sixteen hundred books have been banned across school districts in the past year. Forty percent of those books contained themes of racism, rights for African Americans, police brutality, and more.

In the Agua Fria High School Library A table is located near the front desk with caution tape wrapped around the legs. On this table sits numerous books that have been challenged or banned. A pamphlet listing about thirteen books that were banned/challenged is inside a small rotating bookshelf for all students, educators, and staff to see. The head librarian at Agua Fria; Mrs. Heffington organized this table in honor of Banned Books and Challenged Books Week. One of the books on the table is “The Hate You Give” by Angie Thomas. This book deals with heavy subjects including racism and police brutality. According to an article titled.According to an article titled “Banned Books 2023” Parents at a school in New York suggested the district Objected to Critical race theory and an alleged anti-cop bias.“The Hate You Give” is one of so many books rooted in African American tribulations that have been banned and other challenged; threatened to be banned.

Not only does the banning of books affect students but it affects educators just as much. Mrs. Heffington has a challenging but rewarding job at Agua Fria deciphering what books to put in the library and what books to not. During a discussion regarding how parents’ involvement and opinions  dictate what is in the library, she expressed “There’s a large difference between seniors and freshmen. A lot of these books are removed due to younger ages … I can’t build a library based-off of incoming freshmen who were very recently middle schoolers” In a passionate discussion with Mrs.Polvino the second Librarian at Agua Fria High School exclaimed “Its history. Don’t get rid of history ..my thing is we don’t look at color … we should all be treated the same.”

Mark Yslas is the Superintendent of the Agua Fria High School District. Yslas has been the superintendent for three years. He oversees all five public High Schools within the district.

When asked Yslas explained that there are currently no AP African American studies in the district but the class has been proposed. The process of approval or disapproval is relatively simple and significant. The superintendent describes the proposal process as ”A teacher or another educator will propose it to a district board member that oversees that governing board and will approve or disapprove and discuss what will be taught in the course.” In the three years Mark Yslas has been the Superintendent he has yet to encounter a proposed course that was disapproved. It is very possible that if the African American Studies course is approved it will be implemented into optional courses for the district.

When asked about experiences Yslas has had with parents and or educators being frustrated about books they feel should be banned, He expressed that he had not yet encountered that particularly, especially considering that no books in the Agua Fria district have been banned. The Superintendent did recall being asked by someone if they could review all the books currently in the district. Yslas exclaimed, “I did have a gentleman during the summer my first year and second year wanting to read all the books in our curriculum.” I asked the Superintendent if it was possible that the man asking had ulterior motives. He responded, “Yeah I believe he was looking for things that should not be in a high school curriculum.” Yslas has a goal of protecting all students from adult issues that haven’t been solved. He believes that controversy among leaders should not affect students so drastically.  

Critical Race Theory receives very mixed understandings from leaders, educators, and students.Understanding the past and not repeating it is significant, so is shedding a positive light on all Americans no matter their race and ethnicity. So I leave you with a few compelling questions: Is education truly changing for the better? Can learning about CRT in the classroom adhere to the narrative “don’t let history repeat itself?” How old should you be to truly comprehend your and other Americans’ History?