We Do It Bigger In Texas

...especially the Stupid. If the wingers on the Texas State Board Of Education weren't bad enough on the evolution issue, now they've decided that teaching about civil rights leaders (in a state with a rapidly growing minority population mind you) just shouldn't be that important.

Civil rights leaders César Chávez and Thurgood Marshall – whose names appear on schools, libraries, streets and parks across the U.S. – are given too much attention in Texas social studies classes, conservatives advising the state on curriculum standards say.

"To have César Chávez listed next to Ben Franklin" – as in the current standards – "is ludicrous," wrote evangelical minister Peter Marshall, one of six experts advising the state as it develops new curriculum standards for social studies classes and textbooks. David Barton, president of Aledo-based WallBuilders, said in his review that Chávez, a Hispanic labor leader, "lacks the stature, impact and overall contributions of so many others."

Marshall also questioned whether Thurgood Marshall, who argued the landmark case that resulted in school desegregation and was the first black U.S. Supreme Court justice, should be presented to Texas students as an important historical figure. He wrote that the late justice is "not a strong enough example" of such a figure.

The recommendations are part of a long process as the State Board of Education prepares to write new social studies curriculum standards for public schools. Debate on the issue, which will also include questions of the role of religion in public life, could be as intense as that on new science standards that were adopted by the board in March, when evolution was a major flashpoint.

The social studies requirements will remain in place for the next decade, dictating what is taught in government, history and other social studies classes in all elementary and secondary schools. The standards also will be used to write textbooks and develop state tests for students.

Good lord. As Steve Benen notes:

This is bound to help Republicans with their outreach to minority communities, right? It's quite a message to voters in Texas -- Vote GOP: the party that thinks civil rights leaders get too much credit.

Barton went on to say the state curriculum should ignore the contributions of Anne Hutchinson, a New England pioneer and early advocate of women's rights and religious freedom, and argued that Texas social studies books should discuss "republican" values, not "democratic" ones.

Good luck with that down there, guys. Pissing off a generation of black and latino voters by denigrating those who fought for equality is sure to help you regain political control of the Lone Star State.

Honestly, the GOP is self-destructing. It's like they want to lose.

[UPDATE 6:31 PM] And it gets worse. Republican Gov. Rick Perry just appointed "self described creationist" Gail Lowe as head of the Texas Education Board.

So, those who wanted Governor Perry to appoint someone better than Don McLeroy can thank him for that. Actually, unless he appointed Cynthia Dunbar, I don't think it could have gotten worse. So Rick Perry made an easy choice that is meant to appease those who complained about Mr. McLeroy. And in some ways, he succeeded. Already, there are some who are applauding him for selecting a more moderate choice.

But where is Ms. Lowe more moderate? It seems, I think, her rhetoric. From the Denton Record-Chronicle:

Ms. Lowe, who called herself a creationist, said the study of evolution is important to the teaching of biology. At the same time, she added, "Kids ought to be able to hold religious beliefs and still study science without any conflict."

And when she exerts her creationist ideas at Board meetings (for surely all members of the social conservative block do), she does so with subtlety.

But she is not so moderate in her rhetoric regarding sex education, where she has said, "I think parents have overwhelmingly shown that they want abstinence to be taught," although I strongly doubt a majority of parents really think that. Her words aren't so subtle regarding environmental science or the make-up of families, either.

So, when looking at the new Chairwoman's words, we see that she is really only significantly better than Mr. McLeroy in one area of policy: evolution. She might not be as bad with her devotion to conservative principles that hold Texas schools back, but her website claims she is "Committed to excellence and conservative Republican principles," including "traditional values in education."

And remember, the Texas textbook market is big enough that should Texas demand these changes, other smaller states will just have to go along with "traditional Republican values" in the classroom.