Tag: political correctness

Ontario teachers union hands out awards for activism, not math or science

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (EFTO) has handed out more than a dozen awards but not one recognized classroom excellence in teaching math, literacy, science or pedagogy without emphasizing a progressive activist lens.

This month, the union announced its 2024–25 award recipients, honouring “outstanding contributions.” Every academic category from curriculum development to children’s literature was tied to activism, equity, or social justice.

A closer look shows that the “academic” or “creative” awards were overwhelmingly for work that embedded activism into academics. Literature awards went to projects advancing social justice themes, curriculum awards highlighted equity-focused resources, and even environmental education was framed through climate justice, elevating union-aligned activism as the highest professional achievement.

Roughly two-thirds of all awards celebrated work in anti-racism, anti-oppression, DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), or other progressive initiatives, while the rest were awarded for service to the union. No recognition was given for improving literacy, numeracy, or classroom learning outcomes.

Teachers’ unions exist to protect the labour rights of members. As such, their core responsibilities to collective bargaining, safeguarding against unfair discipline, and lobbying for manageable class sizes and working conditions. In Ontario, the ETFO has broadened that role into one that functions as a political and cultural actor inside the education system. Its public campaigns, professional development programs, and awards now consistently emphasize anti-racism, anti-oppression, 2SLGBTQ+ issues, climate change, and decolonization.

Recognizing traditional teaching skills was not on the agenda. True North asked the ETFO why none of this year’s awards recognized classroom excellence in math, literacy, science, or pedagogy unless explicitly tied to progressive political causes. The union did not respond.

The union has received negative public feedback in recent months over its focus on activism. At its Annual General Meeting in August, the ETFO delegates passed a motion to develop teaching resources addressing anti-Palestinian racism. Seventy-one per cent supported the measure, which was intended to affirm Palestinian identity in schools and equip educators to confront bias.

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DOJ Drops DEI Case Against St Louis Brothers After TGP Reporting

The DOJ has dropped its case against two brothers who were targeted by the Biden regime based on a DEI program ran out of the City of St. Louis. 

TGP reported 10 days ago on a case involving DEI in St. Louis.

Under the watch of pro-BLM radical mayor Tishaura Jones, St. Louis incurred the highest murder rate in the country, and the steepest population loss as families left the city by the thousands to escape the war zone atmosphere. Things were so bad that the state had to step in and take control of the city’s police force.

But what were Mayor Jones and the Democrats who ran the city focused on? Not crime, or development, or quality of life – They focused on pushing Reparations, Closing prisons, Installing a “Deputy Mayor for Racial Equity”, and creating a Rube-Goldberg-machine DEI program that encourages graft and grinds development to a halt.

Even though Jones was tossed on her ear in a historic landslide defeat in April—losing by 30 points—progressive prosecutor Hal Goldsmith is still pushing to send minority builders to jail for the “crime” of trying to navigate the city’s ridiculous DEI maze.

The Case Against Brothers Sid Chakraverty and Vic Alston

A building company owned by brothers Sid Chakraverty and Vic Alston stepped up to develop housing in blighted areas of St. Louis.  Even though the brothers are themselves racial minorities and worked with a number of minority- and women-owned subcontractors on the buildings, progressive crusader Goldsmith and the DOJ indicted them on fraud charges for the alleged “crime” of not filling out their DEI reports accurately.

Let’s be clear: the city got what they wanted. Brand-new quality buildings in blighted areas. No money misused. No investors robbed. The only “victim” even alleged is the DEI bureaucracy—the St. Louis Development Corporation—charged with administering the racial quota system.

However, progressive prosecutor Goldsmith (below), and former mayor Tishaura Jones were obsessed with “racial justice” at the expense of real justice. In a similar prosecution from a few years back Goldsmith, described the DEI program as intended “to right the wrong … of years and years of racism” and that the City should be “merciless” in enforcing it.

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How colleges hide quotas, California’s deadly economic model and other commentary

Campus watch: How colleges hide quotas

“The demographic makeup of the class of 2028” — the first admitted after the Supreme Court’s racial-preferences ban — “suggests that at least some colleges were playing games rather than obeying the Court’s edict,” reports Naomi Schaefer Riley at Commentary.

At schools like Princeton, Harvard and Yale, the racial make-up changed only slightly or not at all, likely because they used proxies for race, such as information about the challenges applicants faced based on their schools and neighborhoods — info admissions offices get via Landscape, a tool provided by the College Board, the nonprofit that runs the SATs and AP exams.

“The College Board is colluding in the creation of a complex new system for schools to identify the race of a student without explicitly asking for it.” Universities need to be held “to account.” 

“Lots of well-intentioned political leaders . . . think it’s a great idea” to move city elections to “coincide with the year we pick presidential candidates,” but “I don’t,” warns New York magazine’s Errol Louis.

“National political dynamics would inevitably cause vital city issues unique to New York to get swallowed, distorted, or ignored.” “Imagine trying to help voters focus on strictly local matters . . . while national candidates are spending hundreds of millions of dollars” on “ads for and against sweeping” national proposals. This is exactly why city elections got moved to odd-numbered years in the first place.

“New York is better off deciding local issues without a lot of political noise coming from — or intended for — other places.”

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George Washington University Faces Pressure To Become ‘Sanctuary Campus’

According to Campus Reform, “More than 45 student groups at George Washington University (GWU) signed a petition calling on the school administration to declare the school a ‘sanctuary campus’ for illegal immigrants.”

Like much of academia, GWU is a hotbed of open borders liberalism.

In this specific case, the petition was launched by The GW Socialist Action Initiative.

The group, according to Washington Free Beacon, issued demands for the university, “among the demands were banning federal immigration enforcement officials from entering campus and refusing to cooperate with government surveillance or deportation efforts.”

The Socialist radicals also issued a threat that “any deal that GW could reach with the Trump Administration will harm student life and wellbeing.”

These demands were not without precedent at this university. Previously, GWU’s chapter of Students For Justice In Palestine made a similar demand on May 3rd, “calling on the administration to bar Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and reject compliance with federal deportation orders.”

Students For Justice In Palestine also called President Trump’s policies a “terror campaign” and said the university was taking “blood money” by agreeing to comply with federal immigration law.

In yet another example of irrational intersectionality Students for Justice In Palestine circulated a petition saying the University’s silence in the face of federal intimidation is “violence against its noncitizen community members.”

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White DEI staffer settles discrimination suit against UW-Eau Claire for $265,000

University of Wisconsin leaders recently resolved a lawsuit brought on by a white diversity, equity and inclusion staffer who alleged she was discriminated against because of her race.

Rochelle Hoffman, former assistant director of the Multicultural Student Services at the UW-Eau Claire, and the UW Board of Regents ended the three-year-old dispute by settling the complaint, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

“Under the terms of agreement, both Hoffman and regents stipulate that the $265,000 payment ‘is not to be construed as an admission of liability’ or wrongdoing and is intended only to ‘avoid litigation and buy their peace,’” WPR reported earlier this month.

Hoffman said in a statement: “Despite facing unlawful discrimination in that DEI role as a white woman, I remain steadfast in my belief that high-quality, accessible education — grounded in data and responsive to a changing workforce — is essential for all learners.”

Hoffman is now listed as an employee at Western Technical College, and spokespersons for UW-Eau Claire and the UW Board of Regents declined to comment to WPR.

Hoffman had claimed the public university became a “hostile environment” and there are “blatant actions of racial discrimination against white folks” like herself, The College Fix previously reported in January 2024 shortly after she filed her lawsuit.

“On a regular basis there are great educators that are told they shouldn’t occupy multicultural space, to check their white privilege, passed over for jobs for an outside candidate of color, and reminded they are ‘inherently racist’ because they are white,” Hoffman had alleged.

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Supreme Court Allows Trump Admin To Revoke DEI-Related NIH Grants

The Supreme Court voted 5–4 on Aug. 21 to allow the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to cancel hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants linked to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

The new ruling clears the way for the funding reductions while litigation over the grants continues in the lower courts.

The justices filed five separate opinions explaining their votes.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett voted to allow the grants to be cut.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson, and Chief Justice John Roberts voted to deny the government’s request to rescind the funding.

The high court said it acted because the federal government faces the possibility that the grant monies, once paid out, may not be recovered.

Moreover, “the plaintiffs do not state that they will repay grant money if the Government ultimately prevails.”

The case is known as National Institutes of Health v. American Public Health Association.

The Department of Justice filed an emergency application with the nation’s highest court late last month, asking the justices to block a ruling by Boston-based U.S. District Judge William Young, who found the cancellation was unlawful and ordered the government to restore the funding.

NIH began taking steps in February to end the grants that conflict with President Donald Trump’s policy priorities.

The NIH is the world’s largest government funder of biomedical research.

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REPORT: Muslim Student Was Exempted From Suspension in Loudoun County Locker Room Case Where Boys Objected to Presence of Female

A group of boys at a grade school in Loudoun County in Virginia were recently suspended from school because they objected to a female student in their locker room who identifies as male.

The female student even took pictures in the locker room but the boys were suspended for objecting. The case is outrageous.

The Gateway Pundit reported on this story:

The radical madness in Loudoun County, Virginia, just hit a new low. Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) has decided to SUSPEND two boys at Stone Bridge High School, not because they misbehaved, not because they broke the law, but because they dared to ask why a girl was in the boys’ locker room.

7News reported earlier this year that LCPS launched a Title IX investigation against the boys after they were caught on video asking the obvious question: Why is there a girl in the boys’ locker room?

That video, however, wasn’t recorded by the boys; it was recorded by the female student who identifies as male. A direct violation of LCPS policy, according to the news outlet.

Yet instead of disciplining the rule-breaker, the school launched a full-blown investigation against the boys themselves.

The school’s Title IX Office determined the boys were guilty of “sexual harassment” and “sex-based discrimination.”

Their punishment? A 10-day suspension, a no-contact order with the female student, forced meetings with administrators, and a permanent smear on their academic records that could destroy their college prospects.

Now it is being reported that one of the boys was exempted from the suspension. He happens to be a Muslim.

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Trans Dem Rep Makes Shocking Confession Nobody Saw Coming

One of the most prominent progressive figures in the Democratic Party has made a revealing admission that is now making waves across social media.

Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE), who is biologically male and identifies as transgender, offered surprisingly blunt commentary during an appearance on The Ezra Klein Show. In a conversation that veered away from typical talking points, McBride acknowledged that the Democratic Party may have gone too far, too fast in advancing radical gender ideology. The fallout, McBride explained, has contributed to a nationwide backlash that is increasingly difficult to ignore.

“Candidly, I think we’ve lost the art of persuasion,” McBride told Klein. “I think that allowed for the misinformation, the disinformation — that well-coordinated, well-funded campaign — to really take advantage of that lack of understanding.”

McBride continued by noting that progressives as a whole have become too rigid in their messaging and goals. “We became absolutist — not just on trans rights but across the progressive movement — and we forgot that in a democracy we have to grapple with where the public authentically is and actually engage with it.”

The Delaware congressperson, who made history in January by becoming the first openly transgender member of Congress, has not shied away from contentious cultural issues. In fact, McBride has been at the center of several political flashpoints since being sworn in. Early in the congressional term, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) introduced a resolution aimed at preventing McBride from using women’s restrooms on Capitol Hill. Although McBride chose to comply with the policy and shift attention toward legislative work, the decision drew criticism from some transgender activists who felt it signaled a retreat from principle.

In another highly publicized incident, Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) repeatedly referred to McBride as “Mr. McBride” during a Foreign Affairs Subcommittee hearing in March. The repeated “misgendering” sparked a heated exchange that led Democrats to abruptly end the session. McBride responded coolly with, “Thank you, Madame Chair,” and later denounced the GOP for being “obsessed with culture‑war issues,” reiterating a commitment to stay focused on policy-making rather than personal attacks.

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TV Anchor Sues Boston CBS Affiliate, Claims White Employees Targeted by Corporate DEI Policies

A veteran television anchor for Boston, Massachusetts’ CBS affiliate filed a lawsuit claiming she was demoted to fulfill corporate diversity quotas.

Katherine Merrill Dunham, who is white, claimed that WBZ-TV “exploited” diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies imposed by CBS and Paramount Global, taking “career-ending action” against her.

The lawsuit stated that CBS has said “diversity, equity and inclusion standards need to be a top priority for leadership in every corner.” The suit also cited CBS executives that claimed WBZ-TV was “too White” and had the “least diverse station for on air talent,” and the “Whitest of all their stations.”

In September 2023, WBZ hired black meteorologist Jason Mikell, and Zack Green, a white meteorologist, was let go.

“On February 22, 2024, Defendant Mikell made an inappropriate sexual innuendo about Ms. Merrill on air. Specifically, he implied that Ms. Merrill and her co-anchor had sexual relations at a gazebo. Mikell was not disciplined for his sexually charged remark,” the lawsuit stated.

Fox News continued:

WBZ, CBS and Paramount took no action to investigate Merrill’s complaint about Mikell’s aggressive confrontation and threatening treatment of her, nor did they investigate the previous complaints lodged by Merrill’s colleagues about Mikell’s “sexually charged” comment on air about Merrill, according to the complaint that was obtained by Fox News Digital.

However, Merrill was informed “that an investigation was being conducted into allegations that she treated coworkers differently because of their race.”

“Merrill vehemently challenged the validity of Defendant Mikell’s allegations and denied (and denies) any of her actions, inactions, or comments were as described or motivated by overt racism or unconscious bias,” the complaint read. “Based on the falsity and/or and misleading nature of Defendant Mikell’s allegations, Defendant Mikell acted with malice and/or improper motive in lodging a complaint against Ms. Merrill.”

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Billionaires Backing Woke Math Doesn’t Add Up Amid DEI Rollback

Jim Simons’ mathematical skills helped transform him from a prize-winning academic at Harvard and MIT into a legendary financier whose algorithmic models made Renaissance Technologies one of the most successful hedge funds in history. After his death last year, one of his consequential bequests went to his daughter, Liz, who oversees the Heising-Simons Foundation and its nearly billion-dollar endowment.

What Liz Simons has chosen to do with that inheritance might have surprised her father. Jim Simons devoted much of his charitable giving to basic research in mathematics and science, but his daughter’s foundation is moving in a very different direction. The Heising-Simons Foundation and similar organizations are supercharging a movement to remake K-12 mathematics education according to social justice principles.

The revamp the advocates seek is profound. They reject well-established practices of math instruction while infusing lessons with racial and gender themes. The goal is to motivate disadvantaged students while dispensing with the traditional features of math, like numerical computation, that they struggle with on standardized tests – considered an oppressive feature of white supremacist culture.

In many quarters, including corporations and universities, diversity, equity, and inclusion programs are in retreat due to pressure from the Trump administration and the courts. Not so in public education, with curricula that are locally controlled and largely insulated from the dictates of Washington. That allows progressive foundations and like-minded charitable trusts to continue to pour millions of dollars into reshaping math education for black and Latino kids, including a $800,000 grant this year from the Heising-Simons Foundation, even though there exists no credible research showing that the social justice approach improves their performance.

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