There’s a common trope in the conservative movement that liberals control American schools and use them to brainwash and indoctrinate impressionable American youth.
Conservative publications like RedState and the International Business Times have published articles about how the public school system is turning American children into tree-hugging, Obamacare-loving liberals.
If there was actual indoctrination occurring in American public schools, what might that look like? Perhaps a bill introduced in the Florida Legislature that would require classes in all 1,700 Florida middle schools and high schools to watch a film that clearly and unabashedly promotes a specific political ideology.
In fact, just such a bill was recently introduced in the Florida House of Representatives. So, which power-hungry Democrat, eager to brainwash our children with his liberal lies, introduced this dangerous piece of legislation? As you may have guessed by now, it wasn’t a Democrat who introduced this bill, but a Republican. Sen. Alan Hays introduced a bill that would require Florida students to watch Dinesh D’Souza’s “America: Imagine a World Without Her” unless their parents specifically object.
D’Souza’s film is nothing more than an elaborate piece of conservative propaganda. It relies less on historic facts than it does on assumption that everything America has ever done was absolutely right and good, no questions asked. But what about slavery? The Vietnam War? The century of oppression between the end of the Civil War and the civil rights movement?
There’s nothing wrong with celebrating all the positive things about America, and students should certainly be encouraged to demonstrate civic pride and patriotism.
However, part of being a responsible and empowered citizen is being fully informed, and that means understanding American history as a complex and nuanced topic. Rather than simply viewing the U.S. as a perfect, divinely ordained “City on a Hill,” students should be taught about the problems America faces so they can start to think about how to fix them.
Even if one were to argue that “America” merely presents a valid alternate take on American history, D’Souza’s ideological bias is well known. His previous foray into filmmaking was titled “2016: Obama’s America,” which intended to damage President Barack Obama’s re-election prospects before the 2012 election. But it was riddled with inaccuracies and conspiracy theories.
D’Souza also recently pled guilty to violating New York campaign finance law. D’Souza persuaded two individuals to donate $10,000 each to his friend Wendy Long’s 2012 Senate campaign and then reimbursed them.
Between his penchant for creating propaganda and his legal troubles, D’Souza does not seem likely to contribute much substance to the American education system.
Our goal as Americans and Floridians should be to build and maintain a public school system that encourages students to think for themselves. Mandating screenings of propaganda in Florida’s public schools seems likely to do the opposite.
[A version of this story ran on page 6 on 9/8/2014 under the headline "Senator’s push for film screening is indoctrination"]
