Reading “Parents sue over culture wars” and the previous piece on this topic, I find myself in the odd situation of being in agreement with Gov. Chris Sununu and state Sen. Jeb Bradley while doubting the validity of a lawsuit supported by my own union. I agree with Sununu’s statement that the Freedom from Discrimination Law in no way prevents teaching about any aspect of American history. Bradley is entirely correct that no student should be taught that they are superior or inferior to another because of characteristics such as gender, race or sexual orientation.
While the history of this legislation indeed has pernicious and discriminatory roots, what eventually happened is a classic New Hampshire example of a bad bill being turned on its head and made something else entirely when it eventually becomes law. Would I prefer that the new law’s language were phrased positively rather than negatively? Yes. Is this law unnecessary? Probably. I’m no fan of superfluous laws.
This being said, we should be laser-focused on the newly proposed legislation for 2022 – HB1255 — regarding “loyalty” and the prohibition of teaching anything about the United States that could be considered “negative.” This proposal is one of the most-dangerous, ill-intended bills I have encountered in my 58 years as a New Hampshire resident. We should all be putting our strongest efforts into fighting this, not suing to strike down a law prohibiting teaching that one group is inherently better or worse than another—something progressives should support.
Penny J. Culliton
Temple