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About PA² - Palo Alto Parent Alliance
We are a group of concerned Palo Alto community members, including parents with children in the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD).
Our mission is to ensure that our children receive an education that reflects diverse perspectives and promotes understanding, empathy, and unity within our community.
While we support teaching Ethnic Studies in our schools, we are deeply concerned about the direction that PAUSD is taking in its Ethnic Studies framework and roll-out.
We are urging PAUSD to follow its policies and, by doing so, commit to a transparent and collaborative rollout of an inclusive - not liberated - Ethnic Studies curriculum for our children in PAUSD.
Why Are We So Concerned?
The goal of Ethnic Studies is “to empower students to engage socially, politically, and build critical thinking skills that encourage inquiry…develop respect for cultural diversity and see the advantages of inclusion” . This is “inclusive” Ethnic Studies.
Another type of Ethnic Studies is “liberated” Ethnic Studies.
The difference between "liberated" and 'inclusive" Ethnic Studies is stark. "Liberated" Ethnic Studies, as noted by former California Superintendent of Public Instruction Bill Honig, "sideline[s] racial progress and focus[es] on immutable differences. ... [its] emphasis on victimization narrows students’ perspectives and deprives students of the agency they need to reach their fullest potential." Conversely, "inclusive" Ethnic Studies "inspire[s] all students to embrace their own and others’ cultures, develop their individual potential, appreciate our common humanity and continue the important work of advancing America’s quest for a more perfect union."
Attorney General Bonta, Governor Newsom, and California legislators all have warned school districts against adopting Ethnic Studies content like "liberated" Ethnic Studies, that stereotypes and discriminates against ethnic groups and advances inaccurate and biased content.
PAUSD’s draft Ethnic Studies course outline seems to promote a politicized “liberated” Ethnic Studies, with half of the course outline focused on "Power, Privilege, & Systems of Oppression" and "Resilience & Resistance." What’s missing? Units on ethnic groups' cultural assets and contributions, key concepts taught in "inclusive" Ethnic Studies courses.
Even the Ethnic Studies consultant hired by PAUSD - UC Berkeley History-Social Science Project (HSSP) - promotes politicized “liberated Ethnic Studies”.
How do we know? Here are HSSP’s recommended resources for high schools - straight from their High School Ethnic Studies Initiative Resource Hub:
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Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum Consortium
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Black Marxism
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Defund the Police
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Decolonization is Not a Metaphor
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Wheel of Power/Privilege
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Whiteness as Property
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Why Critical Race Theory Belongs in the Classroom and How to Do it Right
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The Wretched of the Earth
HSSP’s recommended topics for students to learn: that "systems of oppression" are advanced by “White Eurocentric/Western supremacy;” and settler colonialism and decolonization for students to "unlearn...religion, construction of knowledge, family structures, social structure."
To learn more, check out PA²'s FAQ , PA²'s detailed response to PAUSD's inaccurate and misleading FAQ, and Resources.
The PAUSE Campaign
The PAUSE Campaign
After 7+ months of declined meetings and unanswered Public Records Act requests - as well as three community “input sessions” during which most community-submitted questions were unanswered - PA² launched the PAUSE campaign.
The PAUSE letter was submitted to the PAUSD board on May 21, 2024 with 1300+ signatures. It asks PAUSD to “pause” on Ethnic Studies course development until the district follows board policies and ESMC guidance, and:
1. Sets Ethnic Studies Course Standards First
2. Gets Community Input on the Ethnic Studies Curriculum and Materials
Until these requirements are met - per PAUSD board policy and ESMC guidance - please PAUSE Ethnic Studies course development.