Newsweek reports that a geography class at Hermantown Middle School in northern Minnesota is teaching about current events relating to ICE through a liberal lens. The lesson is a part of a unit that aligns up with the geography education standards in Minnesota.
Rhyen Staley, director of research for Defending Education, said that a parent reached out to his organization to share slides and emails to and from school administrators. One of the slides asks students in what ways ICE has gone to far and included a list of their “tricky and violent tactics.”
"The concern that we have as an organization with this is that, again, it's very political. It's very one-sided, and it's meant to move the very young students to adopt a very, very far-left viewpoint on these situations," Staley tells AFN.
"The concern that we have as an organization with this is that, again, it's very political. It's very one-sided, and it's meant to move the very young students to adopt a very, very far-left viewpoint on these situations," Staley tells AFN.
Minnesota has seen a lot of ICE activity in recent months. There have also been protests over the ICE and Border Patrol-involved shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.
The Trump administration has stated the officers were in the right. Still, there have been countless news stories about these situations, news stories that Staley said were also included in the anti-ICE lessons.
"When it references news articles and videos to watch, those videos are also very, very slanted in a direction opposing the current Trump administration," informs Staley, a former public and private school teacher and coach.
AFN is seeking comments from the school.
Meanwhile, Staley, as a former public and private school teacher and coach, wanted to stress that not all teachers are acting as political activist in the classroom.
"There are a lot of teachers who just want to work with their students, get them to read and learn the material, and go home to their families. You really have to start out with knowing your community, but these activists posing as teachers are everywhere, even in the reddest of states," warns Staley.
As a result, Staley recommended that parents and community members ask teachers and administrators about curriculum, what it says, and who is approving the material.
"My guess, in this specific example we're talking about, is that this teacher had a lot of liberty to bring in material to meet the standards that they have to adhere to," says Staley. "Talk to your kids when they come home from school and ask them what they learn, and maybe you can even get an insight into their position on things by asking them how they view these situations and so forth."
