Signatures
This is the list of people who have signed the pledge or petition to date.
Jesse Hagopian | Seattle, WA
It's an honor to rise up with thousands of educators around the country to say we refuse to lie to children about the role of structural racism in this country. Students deserve to learn the truth: the U.S. was founded on genocide of Native Americans and enslavement of African peoples. This foundation of our country has embedded racism in our institutions and systems for over 400 years. My students will learn about the freedom fighters who challenged racism and all forms of oppression--regardless of the law.
Bubby Whitmore | San Carlos, CA
Ryan Walzer | Chicago , IL
Carmela Ortiz | New York, NY
My students deserve to know the kind of world they live in and will inherit in order to make it a better place for everyone.
Lynette Lazarus | Philadelphia, PA
Susan’s Stevick | Atherton, CA
Many of my students have green cards and plan to become US citizens. It’s important that they learn the truth about slavery and racism in the US.
Sam Diener | Dorchester, MA
I wish to stand in solidarity with all those teachers who are refusing to be intimidated, refusing to betray their students, refusing to serve as mouthpieces for state governments who are promoting the lies of oppression.
Carly DeLeu
Michael Rolph | San Francisco, CA
Marissa Steinberger | San Francisco, CA
I vow to support the truth, and help to dismantle white supremecy
Renee Tajima-Peña | Los Angeles, CA
Anne Campbell | Seattle, WA
It is my ethical obligation to teach the truth and I will always do so to the best of my ability.
Kelsey Jones | Berkeley, CA
I care deeply about the truth of this country's history be told in order to end oppressive methods. I think students are the key to change in our future and they deserve the right to know the truth.
Adrian Bacong | Los Angeles, CA
Acknowledging our stories and the implications of past injustices is important for all of us, at every educational level.
Maria Burnett | Grand Portage, MN
Teaching the Truth acknowledges that man, political party nor society is perfect. That people can learn from past atrocities, mistakes and the maltreatment of others based on the color of their skin and or ethnicity.It is about becoming better human beings to others and ourselves.
Nicole Gamblin | Mapleton Town of, ME
Truth matters.
Colette Auerswald | San Francisco, CA
Unless we understand the true roots of disparities, we cannot end them.
Elana Jacobs | Skokie, IL
Anna-Michelle McSorley | Los Angeles, CA
My son needs the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Quinn Powers | Marietta, GA
I believe that everyone, especially children have the right to learn the truth about their history. The good, the bad and the ugly. It's all apart of what's brought us to where we are now. I will not lie to my student's, my children or myself about what has taken place in history past, present or the possible future.
Sharon Hegwood | Milwaukee, WI
I feel that the time has come when black children and all children need to know their true history and that the world is made up of people of all backgrounds and no one should be excluded.
Lori Lewis | Milwaukee, WI
the TRUTH shall set us FREE!!
Francesca Ferraro | Milwaukee, WI
Emma Gallo-Chasanoff | Ann Arbor, MI
Lisa Zander | Seattle, WA
Selected Pledges
Click on pledge below to read many more.
As an educator who is serious about teaching the truth I will not be bullied into silence. I will do my part in the fight for equity and equality by making sure my students are most equipped to fight this ugliness in the real world.
Yes, the truth of American history needs to be taught, but also its impact on the rest of the world, such as its role in WWII. I just finished teaching a college-level course on the Holocaust, and could not believe how little the students knew about the rest of the world’s participation in the war! They seemed to believe that WWII was ended by the US alone!
“When you begin to do things that raise the achievement of the poorest and disenfranchised students, you may not always get applause. You need to be ready for that.” Dr. Asa Hilliard
“Resistance is a powerful motivator precisely because it enables us to fulfill our longing to achieve our goals while letting us boldly recognize and name the obstacles to those achievements.”
Dr. Derrick Bell
Our young people deserve the truth and it is our kuleana (responsibility) to give space and opportunity for the truth and the difficult conversations.
If we don’t teach it all, we teach nothing…
Social justice is a major theme of my Humanities 7 course, and my school uses Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s HILL framework (development of identity, skills, knowledge, Criticality) to frame our entire curriculum. Student agency through research work and essay writing, and action-oriented civic engagement work, define what we “cover” in my course.