Teachers Union Teaches Radical Agenda to Students in DC

Conference includes session for pre-school teachers​ on ‘affirming LGBTQIA+ identities in and ‌out of the classroom’

The second largest ⁢teachers’ union in the United ⁤States is arriving ⁢in the nation’s capital on Friday to instruct teachers ‌to bring LGBTQIA+ ideology, racial equity, and⁤ climate justice into classrooms for all ages, ‍according⁣ to a conference agenda.

The⁣ American Federation of Teachers’ (AFT) “Together⁤ Educating America’s Children” ‍ conference, scheduled for July 21-23 ‍in Washington, D.C., will feature sessions aimed at all teachers from‍ preschool through⁣ high ​school titled “Affirming⁢ LGBTQIA+ Identities in and ​out of⁣ the ⁣Classroom,”⁢ “Education for Liberation: The Role of the Racially Conscious ⁤Educator in ⁣Combating Oppression,” and “Strategies for Integrating‌ Climate ‌Change into​ Your Teaching.” Attendees will also hear from ​Education ⁢Secretary Miguel Cardona and AFT president ⁣Randi Weingarten on “What Kids, Teachers, and Communities‌ Need.”

The conference comes as student learning continues to lag after AFT and ⁣other teachers’ unions worked with federal agencies and local school districts to keep kids​ out ⁣of classrooms. Recent data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress found test scores are at decade lows nationwide. Math scores for 13-year-olds fell to their lowest level since 1990, and ‍reading scores⁣ dropped to their lowest since 2004.

The teachers’ union came under scrutiny for its position on school closures‌ during ‌the coronavirus pandemic,⁣ and its work to make those policies a reality. A report released by House ⁣Republicans last year found the Centers ​for Disease Control “allowed AFT to insert language into‌ the Operational Guidance that made ‌it⁤ more⁣ likely schools across ⁢the country would remain closed after February 2021.” AFT-affiliated unions⁣ in ⁢ Chicago, Washington, D.C., and other cities kept schools closed ‍until February 2021 ‌and later.

Weingarten⁢ has ⁢since claimed AFT ​”tried to‌ reopen schools safely since April 2020.” She defended the collaboration in House testimony earlier‍ this year, saying “any claim ​that the contact the AFT ⁤had with the​ CDC​ was unusual or ⁣inappropriate … is simply wrong.” Attendees ⁢at this⁢ weekend’s conference will be required to show proof of COVID ‌vaccination ⁤and pass a rapid antigen test at the door. Any attendee who is vaccinated and boosted may⁢ still be⁢ prevented from attending these ⁤and all ‌other sessions if they test positive​ for⁤ COVID upon entrance.

The AFT did not respond to a request ⁣for comment.

At the conference, a​ session focused on “Affirming‍ LGBTQIA+ Identities⁤ in and out ⁤of the‌ Classroom” will feature “Elementary Learning Behavior Specialist” Mari Garvonado, who works “towards dismantling white supremacy,” according to her biography. The second speaker, Omar ​Salem, is “an ⁢educator committed to anti-racist, anti-biased, and pro-Black practices in and ​out of the⁤ classroom,”‌ according to his biography. The session is ‌labeled grades “PK-12” and will “model an identity-affirming space that centers on LGBTQIA+⁣ voices”‌ and ‌help teachers “gain actionable skills toward transforming school culture,” according to the ⁢session’s‍ description.

The session⁢ titled “Education for Liberation: The Role of the Racially Conscious Educator in Combating Oppression” will⁤ explore “what it means to lead for racial equity in education” and​ how “innocuous complicity⁢ in inequitable​ systems plays a role⁤ in perpetuating inequities in schools.” ⁤Tracey Benson, “Racial Equity Workshop Facilitator and Coacher” and founder of the Anti-Racism ⁢Leadership ⁣Institute will lead​ the session. The session targets grades “PK-12.”

Another session advertised as “Strategies for Integrating Climate Change into Your Teaching” is ‌also ‍labeled “PK-12” and will explain how “climate change education can fit into any subject area.” Julie Kwong, a chief product officer for SubjectToClimate—a nonprofit aimed at bringing climate change ‍materials to K-12 ⁣leaders, according to its website—will co-lead the​ session with Sylvia Scharf, a “climate education specialist” with the Environmental Solutions ‍Initiative at ‍MIT, which recently hosted an online‌ event on “how K-12 education can be an ‍effective force for climate action.” The AFT session⁢ description invites educators ⁢to‍ help make “pressing climate issues” ⁣a “topic accessible for all students.”

Elisa Waters, teacher of “Spanish and Social‍ Justice,” will lead the session⁢ on “The⁤ TGNCNB Inclusive School and Classroom,” which highlights how “cisnormativity can be limiting for TGNCNB (transgender, gender nonconforming, ‍nonbinary) and cisgender folks alike.” The⁤ session targets third ⁤through 12th-grade⁣ teachers.

Across the nation, enrollment in non-public schools is ⁤up. Private school enrollment ⁤rose 4 percent ‌in the 2021-22 ⁤school year⁣ as homeschool enrollment increased by 30 ‌percent,⁤ according to‌ the Urban‌ Institute. The National Catholic Education Association reported a 0.3 percent‍ increase in the 2022-23‍ school year.