MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama lawmakers advanced a bill Thursday that would ban “divisive concepts” in classroom lessons and worker training, including the idea that people should feel guilt because of their race.
The bill is part of a conservative effort to limit how race and gender are taught in classrooms and worker training session, but that Black lawmakers called an endeavor to whitewash the nation’s history.
The Alabama House of Representatives approved the bill on a 65-32 vote that largely fell along along party lines. The measure now moves to the Alabama Senate.
The bill by Republican Rep. Ed Oliver of Dadeville would prohibit a list of “divisive concepts” from being taught in schools and in diversity training for state entities. The banned concepts would include that the United States is “inherently racist or sexist” and that anyone should be asked to accept “a sense of guilt” or a need to work harder because of their race or gender.
“It is to prevent kids from being taught to hate America and hate each other,” Oliver said of his bill. He added that it’s intended to create a “nice, safe environment for kids to learn without distractions that may not be age appropriate.”