Anchorage School District leaders repeatedly claim they have no intention of teaching critical race theory and yet district leadership is actively encouraging teachers to enroll in a so-called “anti-racist” workshop that condemns “whiteness” and pushes the core tenets of critical race theory.
Teachers received an email from Superintendent Deena Bishop last week inviting them to join a two-day training that aims to “decenter whiteness” and expose how educators reinforce traditional authority structures that enable racism in Alaska’s classrooms.
Scheduled for Dec. 4 and Dec. 18, the workshops are hosted and funded through the University of Alaska, Anchorage. They feature radical critical race theory activist Felicia Rose Chavez, author of “The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop: How to Decolonize the Creative Classroom.”
In a YouTube video from earlier this year, Chavez described her workshops as a means of empowering “everyday writers of color” who have been systemically shut down and silenced due to systemic racism in America’s schools.
“I’m done with being silent,” Chavez said. “The anti-racist writing workshop is a memoir in how to decenter whiteness, decenter authority.”
She added that it’s “time to go beyond a posturing of diversity and evolve a system that no longer works. It’s time, each and every one of us reflect on how we reinforce racism in our classrooms. It’s time for actual change.”
The workshop is being provided exclusively for Anchorage School District and Middle College Educators and is hosted by the Writing Project at the University of Alaska, Anchorage.
To entice Anchorage teachers into taking the course, the UAA program is offering participants a $3,000 stipend along with a $200 book stipend. The enrollment deadline was Nov. 19.
Bishop’s email also included several resources for teachers to rethink how they present Thanksgiving Day by putting greater emphasis on how the white pilgrims oppressed Native Americans because their “underlying motive to move the ‘New World’ [was a] desire to own and control Indian Lands.”
TAKING ACTION
— Contact Anchorage School District Superintendent Deena Bishop at 907-742-4312 or bishop_deena@asdk12.org
— Contact Anchorage School Board members here.
Click here to support Alaska Watchman reporting.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Nov. 24 to clarify that funding and stipends for the writing workshop are provided through UAA.
61 Comments
I am Cherokee and am a European mutt AKA “Whitey”. Minorities attribute my skin color to an identity(stereotype) before they know me, kinda like.. Rascists?
I deserve Nothing for the Trail of Tears.. how could I!?
I exist within America as an American Citizen, I am privileged to be a part of, and proud of this nation.. every nation has blood in their past.
YES, horrible things happened, but they are in the past, I am not a victim, I dont need to make victims to lift myself up.. I do it by being a good person and contribute to my community and the lives I touch.
I will not allow some Big Hats to determine the narrative for me or to use me for a political agenda.. like some tool.
Alaska is falling apart due to the Godless people whom stand for nothing as they fall for everything. Bend over a little further, Uncle Sam needs YOU! and your children.. and their children and all the Freedoms that remain in our Constitution…. for now.
-Common Brandon..
But what you will see, is all that and more coming from career politicaians.. bunch of parasites!
Very well said. I too have a mixture of Cherokee, African and European ancestry. And, we are all, according to current scientific theory, descended from common ancestors.
Wow. Looks and sounds like a totally unbiased article here. Where did your learn journalism? First you let a blog come out with nothing but false information about the situation at West High School, then this article meant to rile up your friends. Sure long for real journalists that look at the truth of each situation without bias and sensationalism. No idea why this garbage comes to me, but please delete my email so I don’t see it anymore.
CNN and ADN are real journalists right “panties in a wad” Perkins?
If you’re looking for unbiased news, you’re on the wrong site!
What the blank it’s a website (alaskawatchman) and a good one at that. You had to click on it and read it.
Get a life
Go watch your Fake CNN news in your bunker and stay there, just like uncle Joe.
You sound just as dumb as those doctors who think the Covid jab is a way to end Covid. Lol.
Well the links are all there in order to verify. So you are denying the workshop is occurring? Thar it is not an ‘anti racist’ (meaning racist as long as the race is the correct color to denigrate)? Is it that you don’t want to hear truth?
Mikey’s triggered!
Well…
Bye…
I’m guessing that he never donated anyway?
Weren’t a principle at Mears? You masqueraded as an educator all those years but really you we’re just another socialist indoctrinator. I am ashamed to know you.
Still beating puppies Mikey? How about you let the grownups talk for a while.
Marxism has made significant headway, shocking to see this and they don’t even hide it anymore. I guess under Biden all things are possible. LGB.
Weren’t the Spanish colonizers too?
I don’t know if she is being decentralized enough in her thinking.
It seems just mentioning being white make this a racist program.
I’ll put this class on my cancel list along with Thanksgiving dinner.
So, how many took the money and signed up?
The end game is to convince enough people that the founding of our country was inherently racist, therefore we need to tear it down, and re-write the Constitution, no doubt in the image of the CCP.
Oh, Joel. You never cease to prove repeatedly that you are as stupid as you look. You, and the rest of your dummy brigade can’t define critical race theory. Period.
Interesting. Mr. Eric Thomas’s criticism is baseless and personally attacks the authors personal appearance. Maybe Mr. Thomas could have also attacked the authors choice of clothing or hair style. Very childish but hopefully you feel better.
Alaska Watchman and MRAK are somewhat biased towards the right (because it is actually right and righteous). But you don’t see the leftist bias elsewhere? Then yes, this must truly shock you. Go find a safe space. This isn’t it. Go read that Leftist rag, ADN, clutch at you pearls, and have a nice glass of rose’. The rest of us will keep recognizing truth and the best and most truthful journalism in the state. We will keep donating as we can.
Yes, please post the names of these teachers taking this class. To alert parents to which teachers you Don’t want teaching your kids
Better yet take your kids out of these woke schools.
Sort of a bit of the proverbial ‘hair of the dog’? Use racism to supposed cure racism? Even if racism doesn’t exist? These people are deluded narcissistic nuts.
Thanks for bringing this to light. I’d like to go just to expose this nonsense for what it is. Shame on you Deena for inviting foxes to the hen house. Another sjw, convincing people they are victims.
Squanto a man who had every right to be unforgiving when he finally returned back to America has a Freed man only to discover his entire tribe was wiped out by disease. He is God’s example of redemption and forgiveness. I see Squanto’s reaction to the Mayflower pilgrims plight is more better for our children to focus on than the bad example of those sailors who stole Native Americans enslaving them. Squanto’s story and how he responded to the pilgrims is more encouraging. He could had allowed those pilgrims to die saying to himself what was done to me I will do to them showing no compassion and grace in their hour of need, judging those pilgrims for the sins of Squanto’s captors.
http://www.joyfulheart.com/thanksgiving/squanto.htm
Squanto’s captors were not Christian however these pilgrims were Christians and because of God’s mercy over Squanto handing him over to real Christian slave owners, they shared the Gospel and treated their slave well even with Squanto last Christian slave owner maintaining his promise if Squanto conducts himself well then he will send Squanto back to America on the next ship. I am guessing Squanto while observing the pilgrims must had seen they were his Christian brethren. God always takes care of His family, so must we if we are to be God’s elect.
Teacher aides need this too . . Dealt with one who treated me weird always gave me attitude and spoke to her about it then she gave that same attitude to my son . Had to speak to her about it as well . . Next time I’m giving the word to her boss .
Why wait til ‘next time? Do it now!!
Teachers are not teaching our students academics, instead they are teaching radical, new beliefs. They are teaching whiteness is bad, and America is racist and oppressive. Teachers are also teaching “gender confusion.” They are brainwashing our students with poisonous delusionary information that has been creeping into classrooms. These are teachers that were educated with critical race theory. Most of them are under the age of 40. Critical race theory has been taught in schools for the past 40 years, without the oversight of parents. The overwhelming majority of administrators and faculty are leftist democrats, or they are deep into critical race theory. They are also hostile to religion.
Critical race theory ideology teaches children that white people are racist oppressors, that whiteness is bad, and blacks are the victims. Teachers are teaching white students as young as 6 years old, that they are born racist because they are white and should feel guilty because they are white. Students are not being taught history, instead they learn about ZOMBIES and alphabet soup genders. The teachers are teaching students left wing academics and wokeness, a delusional fantasy. Teaching critical race theory produces aggressive, illiterate children, which negatively affects their future and success in life.
The leftist wants to rewrite American History with wacky critical race theory. They want to coerce and brainwash the next generation that white Americans are white supremacists, and every establishment is run by white supremacists and white Americans must repent for past generations sins.
Teaching critical race theory is no different than what the communist regime used. The communist regime used the same critical theory to divide people by social class rather than race. Critical race theory is a deadly old ideology that is Marxist and utopian. The leftist democrat mind is guided more by WACKY, INSANE IDEAS, THAN REALITY AND COMMON SENSE!
Public schools, colleges and private universities that teach anti-Americanism are getting millions of dollars in federal funding, as much as half a billion.
The brave moms and dads are now fighting hard to rescue a generation from every school across the country where this toxic, hateful, cultlike ideology is being shoved down children’s throats, by teachers who disguise critical race theory as antiracism. Manhattan prep schools resist critical race theory.
It will take 20 years to educate a new generation with the needed knowledge and truth to be successful in life.
Signed,
Color blind and PROUD to be white!
ALASKA MUST ENACT THIS LAW THAT BANS CRITICAL RACE THEORY!
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has passed a law that bans public schools from learning and teaching critical race theory, because it teaches children to hate our country.
The statute bans what it calls; “Examples of theories that distort historical events and are inconsistent with State Board approved standards include the denial or minimization of the Holocaust, and the teaching of Critical Race Theory.” The statute bans what it calls; “Examples of theories that distort historical events and are inconsistent with State Board approved standards include the denial or minimization of the Holocaust, and the teaching of Critical Race Theory.”
In June, New Hampshire passed the “Right to Freedom from Discrimination in schools and Public Workplaces. It is a law that prohibits critical race theory from being taught in schools.
New Hampshire is one of six states that have enacted policies based on anti-critical race theory rhetoric. The bill was introduced as a ban on “divisive concepts,” and restricts the way educators can teach about race and gender in the classroom.
The law is enforced by everyday citizens who can use a new web portal to report teachers. If someone believes that a teacher has violated the law, they can sue the school district and the New Hampshire State Board of Education can discipline a teacher by terminating their position and stripping their teaching license.
Bye Felicia! ;P
Alaskans, we need to follow In Ron DeSantis’s footsteps and ban CRT from our state!! Our country’s forefathers are spinning in their graves.
DeSantis is the GOLD STANDARD OF A GOVERNOR!! HE WILL MAKE AN AWESOME PRESIDENT!
Where’s the money coming from? ASD budget?
They are funded by the Federal Government- with our taxes!
For $3,000 I’ll take the class just to better understand what we are fighting against. Alas, I only teach college students, whom we all know are already well set in their belief system and incorrigible.
I posted what these lunatics are teaching!
God is Good, All the Time
President Truman said:
“Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear.”
A little history for the “ghost theory” lunatic believers (CRT)
Our Founding Fathers understood the nature of government, to always expand its power and privilege.
Our Founding Fathers also took steps to guard against MOB RULE and a dictatorship of interest groups.
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and John Adams and dozens more were signers of the Declaration of Independence and delegates to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, many of whom had noteworthy careers in law, politics, and the military. Most of their names are known only to historians or devotees of the period.
Without them, there would have been no United States of America
During the American Revolution, George Washington led the Continental Army to victory over a much larger and better equipped British army.
The Founding Fathers often viewed their new government as an experiment.
Their experiment resulted in a constitutional republican form of government that has withstood both internal and external threats, including a bloody Civil War, and has led the United States to become the most powerful country in the world.
In the end, the legacy of the Founding Fathers is the promise of liberty and justice, not only for Americans, but for any people willing to invest in a democratic self-government.
On February 4, 1789, electors chose George Washington to be the First President of the United States of America. (in which today, the lunatic leftist ghost theory believers (CRT), love defacing our Founding Fathers monuments)
We should be thankful for democracy and the commonsense of ordinary Americans who continue to stand up to DEFEND democracy, individual rights, our history, culture, and religion from MOB RULE!
In November 1621, the Plymouth colonists (Pilgrims) the Native American allies, and the Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast in Massachusetts. The first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM THE PILGRIMS AND THE WAMPANOAG INDIANS!
CRT is a movement by the leftist lunatic Democrats. They are pushing this nonsense down students throats! CRT is very dangerous. It perpetuates hate! CRT is literally a GHOST THEORY (meaning there is no proof, it is ALL made up). The leftist are coercing students into learning this bizarre theory, that teaches hate. It is child abuse! The leftist are trying very hard to push it into the nation’s culture and schools, but it Ain’t gonna happen! The Mamma Bears and the Daddy Bears are fighting back very hard – Six States have already banned it. Trump banned it but Crazy Joe (who needs to go) reversed the bill.
The Democratic party operates by creating victims and always has.
Critical race theory is a RELIGION to the leftist democrats! Six states have already banned it! It ain’t gonna stick around that long…
Under 40 years of age? Yup, indoctrinated with the crazy Ghost theory….
We need the ghosts busters to find the truth in the Ghost theory . Any one have their number?
Wow! with the exception of Mr. Perkins and Thomas, there has been some great input. The only way other than time, to deal with this situation is to fire the Superintendent who is taking steps to undermine the parents authority and desire to have their children taught in the tried and true way. She is a hired employee of the city, therefore she can be fired! Start a petition if needed.
This is a red State, and it’s that way for a reason. The true Alaskans have no room for this nonsense growing in the lower 48. You can bet the ones beating this drum are not born Alaskans. They come from California, New York, and Washington State, to name a few. If they want to come here to live they need to assimilate to Alaskan values, not vice versa. Don’t bring your poison and hate up here because we will not tolerate it.
Yes, it maybe time to enact some laws that will protect us from the insanity. States were meant to retain their autonomy under the constitution yet the federal government continues to attempt to control us. The 13 colonies almost did pass the resolution to form a nation, not wanting someone in Washington DC, telling them how to run their State’s affairs, and what they should do or not do. It’s time to get the feds out of Alaska!
Further, I count on The Watchman to keep me informed of issues that affect us all in this State. Keep up the good work Joel, we appreciate it, and need the no agenda oriented truth.
lobotomy might help
Teachers received an email from Deena, “inviting” or ordering their attendance?
Deena’s on the move again, after her terrible handling of the mysterious appearance of the library book containing explicit illustrations of oral sex and masturbation. Lots of head scratching and, “Hmmm, how in the world did that book get into our library (several copies)?” They all know precisely how that book, along with many others, got there. Deena planned to have a team review Gender Queer by reading it and then deciding on its fate. Illustrations alone are pretty straight forward. Probably a good read…These people take the long way around doing the right thing.
Now, Deena is inviting the teachers to learn CRT, yet another of their plans to continue the covert/in your face destruction of society. Chavez complains about racism and then wants to push children down the road of hate. It’s a false narrative that doesn’t educate children, it weaponizes them. She wants to create racism where there isn’t any to justify her actions. She was better off just being silent.
The goal of CSE (comprehensive sex education) is to break down morals. After this is accomplished, the rest will fall into place. The object of CRT (critical race theory) is to cause students to feel unequal and undervalued, then point them to the “oppressor” as a target. As a whole, this is a very organized plan to destroy society, well thought out and only occasionally is a piece of it uncovered by parents. After a time, the dust settles, and the plan resumes. It’s chugging right along as it has for decades. Perhaps it’s time to halt it by taking children out of public schools and forming group home schools. A child benefits so much more from an old-fashioned basic education than by learning about oral sex and how to best hate white people. What teachers have (not) accomplished can clearly be seen when one looks at the graduate stats or interacts with these kids.
The other option is to get active and demand a list of all the teachers who attend this two day training. Demand Dunleavy follow DiSantis’ example as suggested above and ban teaching of CRT throughout the state. Go after the schools, starting at the bottom; fire the activists and elect conservatives. This is our state and these are our children.
The schools are paid to teach this garbage. Is it always all about the money? This is a very convenient time for Chavez to show up. HO, HO, HO, who would like a little extra Christmas cash? Is this all a child’s life is worth? What is it that turns a human being into a monster who would willingly contribute to their destruction?
And of course, Deena had one last request: ruin Thanksgiving for the kids: tell them the pilgrims oppressed Native Americans. Thanks, Deena, what do you do on Thanksgiving?
Satan surely roams the halls of the Anchorage School District.
(Those who feel the need to insult the editor’s ability to write or the way he looks should be viewed just as they are: unused to seeing the plain truth and uninformed about the issue at hand. They don’t understand how destructive CRT is. If the lens of the truth leans right, maybe it’s because most people are conservative, living in this upside down Amerika.)
As a lesson in racism and statistics I pose these questions:
How many people applied?
How many were accepted?
What are the demographics of each group?
What conclusions can be drawn from that?
If i was a teacher in one of the most diverse school districts in the nation, I would enjoy learning new perspectives. Listening does not mean adoption of the view. Don’t be so afraid snowflakes.
Snowflake: A disconnection from reality. An ideology that declares war on reality.
CRT teaches rebellion against God and his Scripture and against the Constitution and Declaration of Independence which were written by our Founders using Scripture. Scripture teaches that we are all precious in His eyes. We are all one blood from Adam created in God’s image. All of us are “image bearers” When God’s principles are taught it trains us up to be “good” people which is the goal of society.
CRT is atheist and teaches us to hate and be disapproving.
We are equal to each other in God’s eyes.
The CRT is evil and will not produce good citizens. Where is it coming from? Who is writing for this seminar? What is the origin of the material? It doesn’t just come from UAA. It comes from somewhere else passed down through academia all over the nation.
Some person who does investigations should expose the source(s) of this teaching. Is it the Communist Howard Zinn who wrote the US History accepted in nationwide curriculum? Is it David Ayers who wrote Obama’s books? Or is it another good writer with no integrity or conscience about destroying our godly nation?
Someone who is good at trouble shooting needs to find out who specifically wrote this. Where are the toxic ideas coming from?
I don’t mean to be prejudiced, but just looking at her picture, she reeks of liberal. Is it the goofy glasses? The eyes and brow of insanity? The twisted mouth of immoral righteousness? I don’t know, but looking at her all that I can think of is API escapee out of touch with reality. And that’s my prejudice.
haha
Too funny. I thought pretty much the same. But that’s why WE need to take her class!
I hate being white. I bet if I were brown, I’d love her!
Also, I wondered if the RED outfit and the RED glasses were supposed to make teachers think of the holidays. Further down you see $3000 being dangled just to attend. No strings of course. Can’t you just hear the sleigh bells and picture $3000 more of gifts that can’t be gotten because they’re not delivered?
Attend. Hate Yourself. Go Forward and Teach Hate.
Chavez is miserable and looking to spread her ill will.
Merry Christmas, Chavez
Thanks for the laugh, AKY!
They are in a fantasy world with baby thoughts and patty cakes, thinking the world must vanish…
Not kidding: Governor Kate Brown in Oregon is dropping math, reading, and writing in schools, because learning is racist. Is Kate Brown for real????Unconscious?
Who is going to hire students who cannot read, write, and does not how to do math, when they look for a job?????? How will they survive in this world??? For years now, businesses have been having a difficult time filling a job position, because they cannot find QUALIFIED people.
Does Woke mean the lowest denominator of a human being on this planet ?
Teaching CRT and hate in schools results in THUGS smashing windows and looting.
But they are peaceful shoppers.
Having been born and raised in Anchorage it saddens me that Alaska of all places would even entertain the ills of “progressive” movement in any way. The teachers we had were extremely impressed by our education system. I could not agree more. I was surprised to hear that the curriculum had changed drastically gradually but surely.
CRT is yet but only one takeover of the minds of our young innocent children. The younger the better. That’s why the government wants your children as early as 3 and 4 now.
Take God out and enter an entire corrupted way of thinking. Books on and visits by drag queens in the 1st grade. You have your entire adult life to discover anything of the sort.
Books that teach gender is a choice. It’s incorrect to say babies are either a boy or girl because “it’s not true.”
You don’t have to pick or choose your battles they are all battles to protect your kids from this garbage. There’s not much room left for real education with all of this taking up precious classroom time. Kind of like common core that takes 15 min to explain 15-9 and the reason? 15 can be a scary number to a child.
It’s time for parents (and concerned citizens) to dig in and be 100% involved with your child’s lessons in school. After all these kids are our future.
It is a FAD!
Children are being indoctrinated with ghost theory CRT crap!
Do all of you want to know the critical race theory got into our schools and universities in America?
It started in Germany after World War 1
Copy and paste this awesome article! It is short but it will tell you everything about CRT.
Critical Race Theory! This article needs to be in schools!
Please share it with all of your friends and teachers!
(copy and paste) The Birth Of Cultural Marxism: How The “Frankfurt School” Changed America
The leftist say they are fighting prejudice. How could this be when they are anti-Semitism? The clearest example of the leftist anti-Semitism occurred last year at a Black Lives Matter protest in Washington, D.C. The protestors were chanting “Israel, we know you murder children, too,” and a Harvard student read a poem that called Israel “puppet master of continents,” stereotyping that Jews are evil and are manipulating global politics. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., has tweeted support for her anti-Israel politics against the Jewish people because of their economic success. The critical race theory leftist believers are also anti-Semitic against Christians, Judaism, and Islam. Another example of what critical race ghost theory produces. They all need to be admitted into a critical race DETOX center in China or Russia! How does one’s brain think like this? I just don’t get it!
Why isn’t Black Friday racist?
Hey Deena,
Just curious, does the Anchorage School district teach history?
What days of REMEMBERENCE Are students learning and are they being taught to REMEMBER the Attack on America on September 11, 2001?
If not, i attached some Reality information for students.
DAY OF REMEBERENCE!
We should never forget to honor “Patriots Day”, when the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001. An estimated total of 3,000 innocent people that were murdered by Iraq’s Bin Laden’s Islam Al-Qaida terrorist group!
Nineteen (19) terrorists, that were living in the United States, hijacked four commercial jet liners and flew them into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York, bringing both towers down, the terrorist deliberately crashed an airliner into the Pentagon, possibly heading for the White House, and crashed a plane in Pennsylvania, that was headed for California.
People panicking, running in the streets, people trying to get out of the burning buildings, running for their life, people jumping out of the burning twin towers as they come crashing down, drivers running red lights, people desperately trying to get their children from schools, people scattering all over the city, screaming, sirens from fire engines, police patrols, ambulances. The people could not get out of the city. (8 million people lived there in 2001)
It was horrifying to watch! It felt like the whole world stopped.
Unfortunately, technology has allowed the spread of lying, alloying misinformation and falsified information LIKE CRITICAL RACE THEORY, and an alarming number of conspiracy theory believers regarding the TERRORIST ATTACK AGAINST AMERICA ON September 11, 2001,
20 years ago. The need for EDUCATION of that day on September 11, 2001, when the United States was attacked is so very vital.
Go visit Ground Zero and the Memorial Glade in New York and then tell me how and what you felt??
Don’t think for a moment it could not happen again!