If national politics has been more than divided for years, these tensions are also found at the local level in the United States. These snags are crystallized by the elections for positions on the Board of Education. At the level of each county, these elected officials have a say on the budget and management of public schools. But above all they have an influence on school programs. And conservatives are waging a fierce battle to limit the teaching of topics related to LGBTQ+ themes, racism or gender issues, while Democrats and progressives seek to discuss these topics in classrooms.
From our correspondent in Cary, North Carolina,
A dozen Democrats gathered to go door to door. But today, the day is dedicated to teachers and education, while in the campaign for the American presidential election, many Republican elected officials accuse teachers of “indoctrinating” students with LGBTQ+ themes or related subjects. to minorities. Accusations that Keri McCauley, democratic activist, no longer supports:
« Diversity, equity and inclusion, terms that Republicans use to scare people, to make people think that our teachings are indoctrinating our children to be gay or lesbian, is absolutely ridiculous. »
To support their remarks, the Democrats called on a teacher, Kimberly Jones. For her, school is the new battlefield for the Republicans: “ As seen in extreme regimes around the world, they are using the methods we often see at work in extremist regimes. They start with the children to ensure that only their beliefs and worldviews will be presented to the children. »
One of the consequences is the banning by Republican elected officials of Books in public schools, which is opposed by Democrat Tyler Swanson, candidate for re-election for the Wake County Board of Education: “ Books and libraries are windows for students to discover a world other than their own. It allows them to go to a place where they feel safe, feel visible, where they can imagine another world. »
« Everyone has the right to have their own opinions »
About a hundred miles to the west, in Wilson County, Blake Boykin is also running for re-election to the board of education, but with the Republican Party. For him, all these questions are simply not the responsibility of the school:
« On gender identity and sexual preferences, everyone has the right to have their own opinions, to live their life as they wish. And neither I nor anyone else wants to undermine that. What I don't want is for very young children to be told that a person can be born a boy and wake up and become a girl. This creates confusion, especially at a young age. »
This culture war is not just affecting North Carolina. For book bans, the Pen America association has identified in the second half of 2023 more than 4 000 book bans nationwide. A figure which has more than doubled compared to the previous half-year.
