Abbott wants to put teachers who say stuff he doesn't like on a 'do not hire' list.

[Nevilledog]

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Ruth Ben-Ghiat
@ruthbenghiat
I am *done* with these authoritarian attacks on our hardworking educators, who give so much of themselves, often using their own $ to buy supplies for the children they teach. #teachers #edchat

Mehdi Hasan
@mehdirhasan
GOP Governor Greg Abbott wants to put teachers who say stuff he doesn’t like on a ‘do not hire’ list.

Is this… cancel culture? 🤔 https://chron.com/politics/article/Texas-Parental-Bill-of-Rights-Greg-Abbott-schools-16791504.php…
1:40 PM · Jan 23, 2022

https://www.chron.com/politics/article/Texas-Parental-Bill-of-Rights-Greg-Abbott-schools-16791504.php

*snip*

Abbott, who is running for reelection, has made it a point to target inappropriate content in schools. In November, he directed the Texas Education Agency to develop statewide standards preventing “obscene content in Texas public schools.” Shortly after he told the agency to investigate criminal activity related to “the availability of pornography” in public schools, saying the agency should refer to such instances “for prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.”

Under the Parent Bill of Rights, Abbott said any educator convicted of providing minors with "obscene" content will lose their educational credentials and state licensing, forfeit their retirement benefits and will be placed on a "do not hire" list. The state will also require schools to post the bill online for parents to access.

"Also school districts will be required to provide parents with information and options for charter schools, magnet schools and other public schools as alternatives for their children," Abbott said.

Former U.S. Secretary of Education Bill Bennett, who served under President Ronald Reagan, congratulated Abbott on the bill and reiterated the importance of parents involvement in classroom issues. He said the bill will likely be imitated in other states. "Not every teacher is a parent but every parent is a teacher," Bennett said. "We know that the parents influence on the child is the greatest influence of any adult...We need to restore the priority of the parent to the classroom and to the child's education which is what you are doing."

*snip*