An interesting little article I read in the Sierra Club magazine...
Ideological Alamo
A censored textbook sparks a free-speech lawsuit
Dr. Daniel Chiras never thought that writing texbooks would get him branded a traitor. But that's what happend when the Republican-controlled Texas State Board of Education decided that the latest version of his popular environmental-science text was inappropriate for the state's public schools. Objecting to passages that noted the United States' disproportionate production of greenhouse gases and raised questions about the biblical mandate to have dominion over nature, the board rejected Chiras's book in 2001, lableing it "anti-American" and "anti-Christian". Chiras sued last fall, calling the decision unconstitutional.
With more than 4 million children in public schools and a purchasing budget topping $500 million, Texas buys more textbooks than any state except California - so the board's decision could affect authors, publishers, and students nationwide. "The First Amendment protects school textbooks from being rejected on the basis of points of view, but that's just what the board has done", says attorney Adele Kimmel, who represents Chiras and two Texas students in their lawsuit. "This is blatant censorhsip".
Noting that previous editions of his book Environmental Science: Creatign a Sustainable Future have been a teaching staple for years, Chiras maintains he was targeted by right-wing critics. The suit's defendants, including former board chair Grace Shore, the co-owner of a small gas and oil company, declined to be interviewed, although David Bradley, a Galveston-area board member, did tell his hometown Daily News the free-speech suit was "silly and frivolous".
Textbooks that the board did approve went through extensive, last-minute revisions to soften language out of step with conservative ideals. In a section about climate change, one publisher even added the line, "Does it really matter if the world gets warmer?" - Dan Oko
It starts with brainwashing the children, doesn't it.
at 1:02 PM :: ~#~
