Public school teachers, students and civil rights advocates squared off with defenders of New Hampshire’s law on teaching discrimination in public schools at a packed hearing, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported. House Majority Leader Jason Osborne and Deputy Leader Jim Kofalt were among those defending the statute against a repeal effort, saying critics’ claims were unfounded.
Supporters of the repeal bill (HB 61) argued the law had chilled classroom dialogue about racism and sexism, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. Bill sponsor Rep. Peter Petrigno, a retired social studies teacher and former state Teacher of the Year, put it bluntly.
“The law has nothing to do with real discrimination; instead the law was meant to silence teachers’ voices,” said state Rep. Peter Petrigno, D-Milford, who sponsored legislation ( HB 61 ) to repeal this language attached to the state budget in 2021.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
Defenders of the law countered that it does something far narrower than critics claim, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported. As the article explained, supporters say the statute “merely prevents teachers and private employers from openly advocating the view that one race, ethnic group or gender is inherently superior to another.”
Not everyone who testified backed repeal. Rhoni Harding of Wolfeboro, who taught in heavily minority communities in Texas and Florida, told the New Hampshire Union Leader she questioned the premise of the bill.
“I don’t think kids go to school every day thinking I am different because of my hair or my gender or my race. Adults bring that attitude to the classroom as teachers and I don’t think it’s healthy,” Harding said.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
The ACLU of New Hampshire and the state’s two largest unions had brought federal lawsuits arguing the measure was unconstitutionally vague, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported. ACLU-NH policy director Frank Knaack said the law was so unclear it failed to give educators necessary guidance.
“The banned concepts act is so unclear and vague that it fails to provide necessary guidance to educators about what they can and cannot include in their courses,” said Frank Knaack, policy director with ACLU-NH.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
The bill faced a closely divided House where Republicans held a 201-197 edge, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported, with prospects uncertain in a Senate where President Jeb Bradley had been the chief architect of the original language. Most of the roughly 100 people who testified in Representatives Hall backed repeal.
Union leaders argued the decision about classroom content should rest with teachers rather than with the statute. NEA-NH President Megan Tuttle, a former social studies teacher, made that case in her testimony.
“We need to be trusting educators to ensure their kids get the best education possible,” Tuttle said.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
Both of the state’s largest teachers unions, joined by the ACLU of New Hampshire, had filed federal lawsuits arguing the law was unconstitutionally vague. The repeal bill faced long odds in a Senate whose president had helped craft the original language.
Read the full story at the New Hampshire Union Leader.
