Michigan Votes Forum

Introduced in the House on July 10, 2007

Click here to view bill details.

Could you please stop micro-managing curriculum? Regardless of the topic, I am tired of legislators assuming that they have the required knowledge and experience to mandate curriculum. If a particular topic has merit, it will be addressed by the proper entity (i.e. the State Board of Education). By the way, this topic is already being addressed in the schools.

Why does it need to be so specific? Make sure all cultures are taught.

Without metrics, how does the Lansing determine how much historical contribution from each race/culture merits it's "share" in each curriculum? Local communities should have their say in how a standard baseline of education should reflect the interests of their community/culture, not the omniscient Lansing legislature.

Are other ethnic, racial ot religious cultures to be give equal time in the classroom?

Why not teach this as part of American History, since it is and while you are at it teach labor history at the same time.

Should also teach about international banking. And how spending our money at Wal-Mart will redistribute our wealth to the global economy. Then all us Americans will know first hand about black history! We will be enslaved just like they were! Then we will know how they felt-to have their women and children working for poverty wages or picking cotton wages! Yes include black history and teach our kids!

Why not just teach American History without rewriting it to accomodate every one and make the founding fathers and early pioneers look like the total bad guys that they weren't. Teach History, not just some history and ignore some of the other to make it politically palatable to some.

have already 'bought and paid for' the politician in question. he HAS to do this. he has no other choice. the reasons for 'spinning history' are many, and none are acceptable. telling it like it was doesn't buy the next vote.

This bill (HB 5027) is simply the latest and a somewhat watered down version of HB 4060 and HB 4886, which were introduced in January 2007. All are descendants of HB 5546, HB 6296, HB 6297 and HB 6298, which were introduced in the 2005-06 legislative session and failed to become law. All of these bills share a common defect. They put the legislature into the business of micro-managing specific public school curriculum content. This goes way beyond the legislature’s action last year in setting out basic academic requirements for those who earn a high school diploma. These bills all meddle in the details of content, rather than establish broad policies. The Department of Education is designated as the competent state agency to determine course content standards – what material is to be taught at what grade level. Processes have been developed to ensure that voices from all corners can be heard in the development of these standards. These legislative bills seek to do an end run around that process, and thus politicize the development of public school curriculum and the curriculum itself. These are dangerous bills and they must be rejected.

Why stop at mandating African-American history be taught? I think we should teach all the hyphenated American history we can. Make sure we fragment our history as much as possible. You wouldn't want our children to learn that we are one country with shared goals. Make sure you teach that every group is separate and fighting against each other. You wouldn't want them to believe that we are all Americans. That would eliminate the need for all those special interest groups to keep raising money to pay those leaders' salaries to keep us apart!

we mandate that our kids are taught about anglo white european history and how they came here and built this country....that would be something new.

It is obvious by the number of responses here that the public is a little tired of the constant 'separation' in thinking. Don't micro manage. Don't set any group above or apart. History should include all with even emphasis.

i am currently a student at wayne state majoring in history education. One would be surprised to know that African American history is not a required class for this major. I chose however to take it because in general African American history is brushed over or left out entirely of the history books. I want to know and teach ALL of history not just some or what people think I should know or teach. I walked into the class and was so disgusted to see that I was the only white person in the whole class, and I learned so much more about history. I believe that if the whole truth/history was told in the history books we wouldn't be having all the racial divide right now. A bill like this wouldn't be needed if the books spent the time on all races, it sure opened my eyes to alot of things and whether or not it becomes law as a teacher of the future I WILL INCLUDE it all year in my lectures not just for one month (black history month). Why do we have this divide? I'll help you out with this one when you deny a person's history as being worthy of being taught, learned, and told you basically tell that person they are not worthy. Wake up people, this is as much American history as anything currently in the books now. So sad that there is opposition, it just goes to show how much we are regressing in so many areas, to not know history is to repeat history remember that folks.

That is basically All that is being taught now. If you think back what did you learn about African Americans in your history books? That they were slaves at one time, that they had a role in the civil war? Do you know how much more there is? Did you learn that Licoln really did not want to free the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation, he just wanted to cripple the South's economy? Did you know how big of a role they played in the labor movements during the 20's and thirty's? Guess what I'm 32 years old and the first time I learned anything besides a couple of inventions, slavery, and minimal things during the civil war, is when I took an African American history class. I enjoyed this class so much, I am a history major and I feel it is a shame that none of this was included in my grade school, and high school history classes.

I am American Indian and I don't see a bill here to teach an American Indian history class! What about Germans, Italian, Polish and all the other ****-American histories? This is silly. Let's teach American history and if needed, revise the books to be more inclusive and objective. Don't try to legislate one culture over another. I consider this legislation unfair and racist against my culture, seeing as mine does not rank high enough to get a bill.

I understand your passion and your wanting to teach all of history, but legislating one culture's history to be taught and not all cultures is as unfair as you are trying not to be. Should African history be taught mandatory in the public schools? If you are studying Africa, then yes! Should AMERICAN history be taught in the public schools, yes! Should it include African, Irish, Mexican, etc. history, yes! But don't just legislate African history.

of african-american history are you going to INCLUDE and what little snips of AMERICAN history are you going to leave out? you only have so much time to teach all that history. why don't we teach EXCLUSIVELY african-american history and just call it a day?

right now they are not included into the history curriculum, and I would be willing to bet that the whole state and country for that matter would be up in arms about revising books. We think we have progressed but we will find out how quick we have not. Should other minorities also be involved more YES, but everyone needs to understand right now these kids are just learning what they want them to know which sadly is LACKING in the history of a whole lot of minorities who have made enormous contributions to this country. The books,the course in general, and peoples attitudes are outdated. Maybe the purpose of this bill was to bring it to peoples attention that they do need to be included in the books, as do many others who are ignored.

is that people have yet to realize that we still have a long way to go. People in this state especially need to understand that just because we have made racial progress, things are far from where they should be. People of tired because the economy has got tight. Why did people vote down affirmative action? Because jobs are tight and they did not wantthat being one thing that hindered them? Why not African American history or changing the books? Because many don't want to know what contributions any minorities made they like the current version of events just fine, like praising Licoln for setting the slaves free, pick up a REAL book when you get to college and you can finally find out what's behind it.

bad....our founding fathers that is? Have you done research into history for you to have said that? How have you come to your conclusion? Maybe you have been exposed to ALL of history and made an informed decision but maybe this is everyones REAL fear. If the history of african americans is told to a larger scale, some of America's embarrassing years will be exposed, what you fail to realize is that aside from that there were many contributions, inventions, and VIP that have nothing to do with our faults as a nation at that time. The important thing to remember is that no matter how bad or good ALL history should be learned, because to not know is to repeat.

whites you mean?

All countries have things that they are not proud of but there is only one that people die trying to get INTO. We outlawed slavery, lots of african countries still, to this day practice it. We believe in personal freedom for all. Most of the places that the libs/dems/socialists like seem to believe in freedom for some. You sound like a product of the socialist indoctrination centers that we loosely call schools. You know not of what you speak.

The debate here should not be over whether teaching African history or any specific topic in history is an appropriate thing for our schools to do. The debate should be focused on whether or not it is proper for the legislature to be meddling in education by mandating curriculum content. Irrespective of one’s personal political leanings, the only high ground position to take in that debate is to stand against such micro management of our schools by the legislature. As we have seen in what passes for discussion and debate here, this bill and others like it work only toward politicizing the public school curriculum. That serves only the special interests, and does not serve the general public and the cause of education. You can argue until you are blue in the face – and some of you will – that public school curricula already are highly politicized. That may or may not be so. But it is certain beyond any doubt that HB 5027, and its counterparts in HBs 4060 and 4886 in the current legislative session seek to do exactly that. There are well-established mechanisms outside the legislature for establishing state level curriculum content standards. This is properly a matter for the Department of Education. HB 5027, HB 4060 and HB 4886 should lie buried in the legislative trash heap and never see the light of day in this session or any other.

this legislation and the pres and his no child left behind act that has teachers essentially not teaching anything but MEAP and state test material. I went into my child's school and was disgusted that they finish teaching and practicing for one test and have to go right into testing and practicing for another. Long gone are the days that a teacher could cover material twice in one week if the majority of the students needed more time on it, now they have to move on leaving many behind not just one. The problem here is that the dept of education obviously does not see the problem with only teaching what the government wants us to know about American history and not all of it. Will this bill be buried YES along with all of the citizens heads in Michigan. Keep burying your heads people and we will end up right back where we started from....ooops but some of you don't know about that because you've never learned it in history. Is it to make people feel uncomfortable about what happend in past years? No it is to simply inform and teach about the history of Black Americans as we have done for years with White Americans. When EVERYONE learns to accept each other without race, religion, and sex than we can think about one history but it hasn't happend yet and in 2007 it is sad that the only thing kids learn about Black history is about slavery and the civil war.

is truth, making educated comments based on things which I have researched many sides of. As a history MAJOR I have taken many history classes in my life, and it is a shame that I had to be in COLLEGE before I learned about different minorities history. We call ourselves the melting pot, boy is that a joke, we teach only what the government wants us to know which typically glosses over minorities and their contributions to this COUNTRY that you live in. You speak of getting over it, that we outlawed slavery. Well we also outlawed lynching too, but it is still a quietly practiced thing down south, or didn't you know that? Did you know that hate crimes against minorities has risen steadily in the last few years? Did you know that it is still hard for some minorities to be considered for positions that they are qualified for? Did you know that America has still not had and in my opinion will not soon have a minority President? Why is this sir? Because we are not yet far enough improved and melted to just get over it. Part of the solution is understanding and being taught to appreciate EVERYONE's contributions, culture, and history no matter how uncomfortable that truthful dose of history be.

In science kids learn more than one area, biology, life science, chemistry, etc------Math more than one area, geometry, trig,calculus, etc What is the problem with more than one area of history? I get it, it must be those two words....African American.

The kids that have been in school in the last 20 years learn more about rosa parks than the founding fathers. You are part of the problem, either you are lying or you got out of school a long time ago, try being part of the solution.

"Did you know that it is still hard for some minorities to be considered for positions that they are qualified for?" Name One "Well we also outlawed lynching too, but it is still a quietly practiced thing down south, or didn't you know that?" You can't be serious. Name One "Did you know that America has still not had and in my opinion will not soon have a minority President?" So vote for one, When a qualified candidate runs he will have as good a chance as anyone. "We call ourselves the melting pot," "Because we are not yet far enough improved and melted to just get over it" This is the problem, all the minorities that want to be hyphenated Americans are stopping us from ever being just Americans. The dems/libs/socialists pander to every minoity for votes. Guys like you want to keep old wounds open forever. Again, Get Over it. This is the land of opportunity if you want it. You are also free to whine forever about how we all owe you something.

that the last 'lynching' happened in a detroit suburb not too very long ago. it involved a black man moving into a white neighborhood. it happened in THIS state, not in the south. so, where is all your 'high and mighty' talk of 'racial equality' now? YOU are the bigots and murderers here, not the southerners. you like to perpetuate the myth of the 'backwards southerners' lynching innocents because it takes your minds off of the heinous crimes YOU have committed in the name of the color of your skin. YOUR hands are bloody, not ours. YOUR conscience is bothering YOU, ours is not. michigan is as segregated today as it was a hundred years ago. the whites only want to live with whites, and the blacks can go to hell. rural land is being snapped up by those perpetuating 'white flight' from the big cities. give it up, you will never voluntarily live next to a black man as long as you can help it. you wouldn't last five minutes in a TRULY CHOCOLATE CITY.

In 1925 the NAACP provided legal representation for Detroit, Michigan's Dr. Ossian Sweet. Dr. Sweet faced a mob of angry whites after moving into an all white neighborhood. When the mob attacked his home, gunfire erupted killing one person in the crowd. Dr. Sweet and his brother were charged with murder.

don't want to live next door to a bunch of white folk. There is nothing wrong with choosing to live with people that you have something in common with. Most problems on this earth happen when the social engineers decide that different people need to be forced to live together.

A Very Long Time Ago.

longer time ago. you keep bringing up lynchings in the south, and that's about the time they ended. lynchings in the NORTH however, continue to this day. by the way, most of the lynchings down south were perpetuated by the carpetbaggers from the north. we hung most of those when we caught them.

"lynchings in the NORTH however, continue to this day"

are YOU delusional? your state accuses a black man of murder when he was clearly defending himself against an all white lynch mob. now, what would have happened to Dr. Sweet if he had not defended himself? he would have been LYNCHED. there hasn't been a lynching down south since 1900. there WAS a guy in texas who got dragged by some people in a pickup truck. one of those boys was from up around here somewhere, i believe. but they all got the death penalty.

but you keep bringing up something that happened 80 some odd years ago....Let it Go

I didn't say you owed me anything, I work everyday, and participate as much in this country as you. I am a person who just chooses not to kid myself and think that racism does not still hinder and exist on both sides of the fence. Get a clue and venture out of your lilly subburb once in awhile and take a good look around.

was (up until the storm) america's most popular 'chocolate city'. it was 95% black. it's currently 55% black. i didn't grow up in a lilly white city, i didn't go to a lilly white school, in fact, out of the 75 people in my homeroom class in high-school, i was the ONLY white guy. the three police departments i worked for only hired one hundred white people between them. detroit is a lilly white neighborhood compared to where i'm from.

because SOMEONE keeps saying that lynchings STILL occur in 'the south'. it's amazing what people who have never been in 'the south' know about what goes on down there. a black man hanging from an oak tree attracts a lot of attention, it's NOT something that gets kept a secret. people talk about it, news media come and cover it. when was the last time YOU saw coverage of a black man who had been lynched?