Professor Stephen Zunes’ letter was spot on! Gil Stein is of course regurgitating the stale old conservative talking points. Professor Zunes described (Gov.) Newsom’s, (state education chief) Thurmond’s, and (state Sen.) Wiener’s actions very well: Well-meaning liberals who drank the conservative Kool-aid.
I explained to Mr. Stein that the reason the Holocaust and antisemitism were mentioned a few times within the ethnic studies curriculum is because there is an entire curriculum dedicated specifically to antisemitism that every high school student must take.
What other oppressed group has a whole curriculum dedicated to their plight? Definitely not Latinos who represent 84% in PVUSD.
Apparently that is not enough for Mr. Stein. He also misrepresents what Professor Christine Hong said. Ethnic studies is not based on the oppressed vs. the oppressors as Mr. Stein claims. It’s based on recognizing and understanding the power structures that have served to maintain inequality.
Maybe if Mr. Stein actually took an Ethnic Studies class instead of just repeating conservative talking points he’d have an actual understanding of the curriculum.
— Lourdes H. Barraza, Watsonville
(Ed. Note: We are publishing the names of two previous letter writers because they are frequent contributors to this page and to public discourse on these issues.)
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