One year after the Arizona ^[1] legislature voted to dismantle a controversial ethnic studies curriculum widely used in its public schools, the most revolutionary course offerings in it remain in use.  “Tucson Unified School District (‘District’) [TUSD] has four courses under the heading of Ethnic Studies,” Tom Horne ^[2], the outgoing superintendant of the TUSD reported on December 30, 2010.  “Three of the four programs could be found in violation under criterion three, courses designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group.”

“However, all of the complaints received by the Superintendent of Public Instruction have been as to one of those programs: Mexican American Studies, previously known as Raza/Mexican American Studies.” Horne helped to draft the law designed to defund the courses.

“During the hearings of the Senate Judiciary Committee on the Ethnic Studies bill, the school sent a number of students to testify how much they loved Ethnic Studies,” Horne stated.  “A senator asked a girl whether she could have learned the things she spoke about in other courses.”

“No,” she said, “before I took this course, I didn’t realize that I was oppressed.”

“Now that [I] took this course, I realize that I am oppressed.”

Malcolm A. Kline is the Executive Director of Accuracy in Academia ^[3].

If you would like to comment on this article, e-mail mal.kline@academia.org ^[4]