New Jersey is not immune to these restrictive efforts.
“It’s not only attacking particular concepts and ideas, but saying you can’t have women’s studies or gender studies, you can’t have African-American studies, you can’t have Chicago studies,” Nolan explained. The most comprehensive bill under discussion right now is Florida House Bill 999, which would prevent public institutions of higher learning from offering any major or minor incorporating critical race theory, radical feminism, gender theory, queer theory, or critical social justice, among others. Another favorite target is any subject mentioning gender, sexuality, or LGBTQ issues.Īs of this year, 101 educational gag orders are pending in 27 different state legislatures–not just in Florida and Texas, which have received an outsized share of media attention. Educational gag orders are particularly focused on critical race theory, a subject not actually taught in K-12 or undergraduate classes but one that opponents have adopted as a catchall term for anything to do with race or racism. Nolan led off with a discussion of educational gag orders, which is the name that PEN America, the advocacy group that champions open expression, has given to the laws aiming to curtail subjects that can be taught in K-12 schools as well as public colleges and universities. “The culture wars have many fronts, ranging from school boards to state legislatures, from concepts and curricula to books in both…public school libraries and public libraries, from diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to questions of job security and tenure,” she said.
The rapt audience, comprised of community members from across the political spectrum, learned volumes about the current culture wars being fought over education.Īccording to Nolan, these culture wars are a threat not only to K-12 schools but to academic freedom in higher education. Professor Mary Nolan, a scholar, historian, and professor emeritus at New York University, spoke about book bans, educational gag orders, and censorship to a packed house at the Bernards Township Library on March 28th.
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