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Critical Race Theory Lite: Anchorage School board adopts new equity policies that critics say contain anti-American ideologies

Suzanne Downing
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Critical Race Theory Lite: Anchorage School board adopts new equity policies that critics say contain anti-American ideologies

Equality is out. Equity is in.

On Tuesday night, the Anchorage School Board adopted its new anti-racism policy that reflects the latest social fad of Critical Race Theory, which posits that the nation is systemically racist.

It’s a viewpoint supported by mayoral candidate Forrest Dunbar, as described last June in his description of the founding of the Republic, and all its many flaws, which he inventories in this video clip:

The majority of board members and School Superintendent Deena Bishop dispute the characterization that the new policy is actually Critical Race Theory.

But when School Board member Dave Donley offered an amendment to the policy that stated clearly it was not in support of Critical Race Theory, every member but Donley voted his amendment down.

Board Member Margo Bellamy argued: “I did not rely on Critical Race Theory to create this policy and neither am I pushing for CRT in our district. That is an unfortunate connection to these policies. I can’t control what people believe. I can only state what I know and what I think,” she said.

She said the new policy was formed by the DIRE program of the National School Board Association. DIRE stands for Dismantling Institutional Racism in Education.

DIRE acknowledges that institutional, structural, and systemic racism has been engrained in the history of America and throughout its public education system, according to the NSBA.

Critical Race Theory in education says that color-blindness is bad, that racism is the societal norm, that race, like gender, is a social construct, that measuring progress is a “white” value, and that whites have been the beneficiaries of civil rights legislation.

The books on the Anchorage School District’s equity reading list support most, if not all of the components in Critical Race Theory and many of the writers are considered standard-bearers for the the new CRT ideology:

  • Antiracist Baby by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi 
  • How to be an Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi 
  • Stamped from The Beginning by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi 
  • The New Jim Crow by Michele Alexander 
  • An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar Ortiz 
  • White Fragility by Dr. Robin DiAngelo 
  • So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
  • The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr. edited by Clayborne Carson
  • The Building of the Great Society: Inside Lyndon Johnson’s White House by Joshua Zeitz
  • The Tao of Raven: An Alaska Native Memoir by Ernestine Hayes
  • The Latinos of Asia: How Filipino Americans Break the Rules of Race by Anthony Christian Campo

Alternatives

There are alternatives, but they are not provided to parents and teachers by the Anchorage School District to help advance critical thinking on this controversial ideology. We offer a few of them here as resources to balance the new Critical Race Theory direction of the Anchorage School District:

The Truth About Critical Race Theory, by Chris Rufo.

Randall Kennedy’s Harvard Law Review analysis of CRT.

Beyond All Reason by Daniel A. Farber and Suzanna Sherry

CRT in schools:

Bad Education, by Chris Rufo, describing how a Philadelphia elementary school recently forced fifth-grade students to celebrate “black communism” and simulate a Black Power rally in honor of political radical Angela Davis.

Woke Elementary, Rufo’s report about an elementary school in Cupertino, California—a Silicon Valley community with a median home price of $2.3 million— that recently recently forced a class of third-graders to deconstruct their racial identities, then rank themselves according to their “power and privilege.”

Craig Campbell: A lesson from Charlie Kirk for Anchorage’s ‘turning point’ election

SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR
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Craig Campbell: A lesson from Charlie Kirk for Anchorage’s ‘turning point’ election

By CRAIG E. CAMPBELL

I’m on the road in Dallas for Republican Party training. Before you snipe that “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” let me defend myself by stating I am 69 years young, not old. With that disclaimer out of the way, I wanted to share some “truths” I heard today at a breakfast with Charlie Kirk from Turning Point USA.

Turning Point USA is a grassroots activist non-profit focused on energizing young Americans in the principles of our Constitutional Republic with respect to freedom, the free market, and limited government.

Charlie Kirk held nothing back as he spoke about conservative appeasement to the Democrat machine. He was absolutely right that the Democrat steam-roller of growing government by opening our borders, co-opting corporations to advance liberalism, and making America a socialist nation is in full throttle right now. 

Election fraud, grassroots efforts at getting out the vote, deliberate blackmail of corporations, “in your face” aggressive behavior, and flat out intimidation have become the core strategies of the Democratic Party. The best way to get conservatives to shut-up is to use the worn out racists accusation.

If you don’t agree with them, you’re a racist.

If you support election integrity, you’re a racist.

If you want respect for your individual beliefs, you’re a racist.

If you want to protect women’s rights by opposing transsexual men from participating in women’s sports, you’re a racist.

If you support law enforcement, you’re a racist.

If you want secure borders, you get it, you’re a racist.  

Kirk made it abundantly clear that this is the time for conservatives to wake up and aggressively push back against this rising tide of Democratic Socialism.

He threw a few verbal grenades to stimulate the audience that too often conservatives have to have a “pure” candidate or they won’t vote, therefore we lose even when we have the numerical majority.  

Case in point was this last election cycle in Georgia. President Trump won Georgia, but when the senatorial run-off happened, both Republican senators lost to radical Democrats because a large block of Georgia conservatives didn’t like Perdue or Loeffler. They just didn’t vote.  Unbelievable. Because the Republican candidates were not their ideal conservatives, conservatives stayed home and two radical Democrats now represent Georgia in the United States Senate, making it a 50/50 split and giving immense power to uber-liberal Vice President Kamala Harris. 

No wonder the socialists are pushing to pack the Supreme Court with liberal judges, make D.C. a state giving them two more Democrat Senators for eternity, implementing the Green New Deal, and opening the borders to recruit millions of new Democrat voters. They know they have the Democrat votes and can probably intimidate, threaten, coerce, or convince enough weak Republicans to support their agenda and implement this Brave New World. You can’t make this stuff up, they are playing for keeps.

So what’s my point?  Anchorage has a critical mayoral run-off election on May 11. The split between Bronson and Dunbar is very close. If we are to have any chance of returning Anchorage to the greatness that preceded the destructive Berkowitz/Quinn-Davidson era, we must elect Dave Bronson mayor.

That means every voter that voted for Bronson, Robbins, or Evans must turn out and vote for Bronson in this run-off. No staying home because your favorite candidate isn’t in the run-off. You can bet the Democrats are going to aggressively get out their voters for Dunbar, to include the Falsey and Martinez voters. If we stay home, Dunbar wins, period.

Politics is not a personality contest. It’s the process by which we collectively select our government leaders and determine the type of future we want for our city. It’s an interactive event in which you must participate if you want to change the path Anchorage is currently going of divisiveness, homelessness, a declining economy, rising violent crime, and bigger government. 

You just can’t stay home and expect change to occur against a motivated radical Democrat machine. Look what happened in the Rivera Recall vote. They are playing for keeps and if we lose this municipal election to Dunbar, I am afraid we will have turned Anchorage into nothing better than what we now see in Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco.

Make sure you vote in this Anchorage mayoral run-off, and for the sake of our future, vote for Dave Bronson.

Craig E. Campbell served on the Anchorage Assembly between 1986 and 1995 and later as Alaska’s Tenth Lieutenant Governor.  He was the previous Chief Executive Officer and President for Alaska Aerospace Corporation.  He retired from the Alaska National Guard as Lieutenant General (AKNG) and holds the concurrent retired Federal rank of Major General (USAF).

Canada extends border restriction until at least May 21

Suzanne Downing
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15
Canada extends border restriction until at least May 21

The existing US-Canada land border restrictions have been extended to at least May 21, 2021.

The Canadian government closed the border with the U.S. in March, 2020, and on Tuesday said the closure will be extended. Alaskans wishing to travel the Alaska Highway to the Lower 48 may or may not be able to cross into Canada.

Those traveling to the Canadian border should first contact the Canada Border Services Agency, 1-204-983-3500 (Long distance charges may apply). Officers are available Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (local time) except holidays. Information is also available at this link.

The closure pertains to non-essential travel. Those Alaskans moving south permanently may be able to travel through Canada, but they must test for Covid-19 and follow Canada’s strict guidelines, which includes moving quickly through the country. They should also contact the border agency to make sure they’ll be permitted through, and under what conditions. Those doing what’s considered essential work (moving freight, government assignments) follow a different set of rules.

Alaska has five border crossings with Canada: Near Chicken/Eagle/Dawson City, Tok/Beaver Creek, Skagway/Carcross, Haines/Whitehorse, and at Hyder/Stewart.

Dunleavy joins lawsuit challenging CDC over cruise ship sanctions

Suzanne Downing
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Dunleavy joins lawsuit challenging CDC over cruise ship sanctions

Gov. Mike Dunleavy said the State of Alaska is joining a Florida lawsuit against the Federal Centers for Disease Control.

The Florida lawsuit challenges the CDC’s shutdown of the cruise industry through its “Conditional Sailing Order” on the grounds that it goes beyond the scope of the CDC’s legal authority, the governor said in a press release. 

The CDC has failed to recognize the cruise industry’s voluntary safety measures and the safe resumption of cruising in other countries, he said.

Over 400,000 passengers have returned to cruising in nearly a dozen other countries, resulting in less than 50 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to Dunleavy.

The Conditional Sailing Order also doesn’t take into account the high vaccination rate of Alaskans, the effectiveness of the vaccines against COVID-19, and the low COVID-19 hospitalization rates in Alaska, Dunleavy said.

The CDC also requires expensive and time-consuming “trials” for ships before they could return to service.

“Cruise ships have demonstrated their ability to provide for the safety of passengers and crew, and Alaska has led the nation in vaccinations and low hospitalization rates. We deserve the chance to have tourism and jobs,” Dunleavy said. “The cruise industry is vital to the economic health of Alaska. Alaska has already suffered an economic loss of $3 billion due to the cancellation of the 2020 cruise ship season, and faces another (unnecessary) economic loss in 2021.”  

“Through this lawsuit, Alaska seeks to protect its citizens and its interests by forcing the CDC to act within the limited authority Congress granted it,” said Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor.

“CDC simply does not have the authority to arbitrarily shut down an entire industry,”  Taylor said.

Chauvin verdict: Guilty, guilty, guilty

Suzanne Downing
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Chauvin verdict: Guilty, guilty, guilty

The verdict is in: Minneapolis former Police Officer Derek Chauvin is guilty on all charges: Unintentional second-degree murder, guilty, third-degree murder, second degree manslaughter.

The announcement was made at the Hennepin County Courthouse in Minneapolis, Minn. in the trial for the charges against Chauvin for the May 2020 death of George Floyd, the 46-year-old black man whose neck Chauvin pinned down with his knee on the pavement of a south Minneapolis intersection for more than nine minutes during an arrest.

Floyd, who had a long history of drug abuse and violence against women, died as a result, the jury decided. A video of the apprehension shows Chauvin pressing his knee against Floyd’s neck, in what was said to have cut off the man’s air flow as police attempted to contain him. Floyd was high on drugs at the time of his death.

Politico reported “It was an act of police violence so searing that it set off a nationwide racial reckoning nearly one year ago.”

President Biden, speaking from the White House this morning, said, “I’m praying the verdict is the right verdict. The evidence is overwhelming in my view,” clear direction from the highest office to convict. He did not call for peace in the streets, and neither did Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who encouraged protesters and rioters to up their game and “get more confrontational” if the verdict went the other way.

National Guard troops had headed to downtown Minneapolis before the verdict was read. At the Capitol in Denver, Colo., lawmakers left the building and all cars had been moved from the parking lot nearby. In Los Angeles, law enforcement is on alert in anticipation of widespread rioting. In the nation’s capital, police helicopters took to the air.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot told potential looters: “Don’t test us because we are ready.” Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler declared a state of emergency.

Sentencing will be in eight weeks, the judge said. He could spend up to 40 years in jail. At the end of the hearing, bail was revoked, and Chauvin was taken into custody in handcuffs. His legal team is expected to appeal immediately.

Anchorage Assembly to meet, but will they vote out Felix Rivera as chairman?

Suzanne Downing
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Anchorage Assembly to meet, but will they vote out Felix Rivera as chairman?

Tuesday’s special Anchorage Assembly meeting is to formally certify the recent municipal election. But also on the agenda is a surprise item: The reorganization of the Assembly, with a new chair possible.

Some Assembly members have requested the reorganization; they want Chairman Felix Rivera to be replaced immediately. Assemblywoman Suzanne LaFrance’s name has been floated as a possible new Assembly chair, along with Assemblyman John Weddleton.

During the last Assembly meeting, Rivera stunned the public when he read a statement defaming Assemblywoman Jamie Allard of Chugiak/Eagle River, calling her xenophobic, and saying people like her do not belong in Anchorage. When she called for a point of order, he cut her microphone. Assemblyman Chris Constant then said it was her fault for not calling for another point of order.

Rivera had just come off of a victory against a recall effort launched by residents of his district, and his breaking of Robert’s Rules of Order to publicly denounce one of his Assembly colleagues revealed the real Rivera.

Whether the group trying to remove him as chair has enough votes is uncertain. He appears to have the support of Assemblymen Forrest Dunbar, Chris Constant, and Pete Peterson, while it’s certain that Assemblywomen Jamie Allard and Crystal Kennedy have had enough.

The Anchorage Assembly meeting begins at 5 pm at the Loussac Library at 36th Ave. and Denali Street. There is limited time for public testimony on the agenda. You can watch the meeting at this YouTube channel.

Assembly Chair attacks Jamie Allard, calling her names during official meeting

Pong-gate: What happens in Juneau stays in Juneau, so no leg-wrestling tapes to be released by Legislative Affairs Agency

Suzanne Downing
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21
Pong-gate: What happens in Juneau stays in Juneau, so no leg-wrestling tapes to be released by Legislative Affairs Agency

The videotape of legislators playing pingpong, board games, drinking beer, and leg wrestling in the Capitol’s Terry Miller gymnasium on March 31 will not be released, according to the Legislative Affairs Agency.

The party involved Rep. Sara Rasmussen, Rep. Zack Fields, Rep. Kelly Merrick, and non-legislators.

Must Read Alaska made a public records request for the tapes, and received a speedy reply from the agency’s Executive Director Jessica Geary, who stated,” Per Section IV of the Records Policy (Security Camera Policy), security camera video tapes, digital recordings, or other surveillance material are confidential and may not be released to the public or press, except as required by subpoena or other court order.”

Others have put in similar records requests, including reporters from KTOO, KTUU, the Anchorage Daily News, and even Sen. Shelley Hughes, who wanted to know if any senators were involved. They were not.

Party Capitol: Beer pong, leg wrestling, and a terse memo from Legislative Affairs

Geary said that other non-video records she has related to the matter are in the possession of Rep. Sara Hannan, and that Hannan has indicated that as chair of the Legislative Council, she will not be releasing them to Must Read Alaska, based on the Legislative Council’s policy, the deliberative process privilege, and on Art. II, Sec. 6 of the Alaska Constitution.

“Therefore, a Legislator’s records are not subject to disclosure under AS 40.25.110 – 40.25.122. Each Legislator
may, at his or her discretion, elect to release or not to release information from that Legislator’s
own records. I have spoken with Representative Hannan regarding her legislative records. She
asked that I communicate to you that any records in her possession, which may include the records
you have requested, will not be produced in response to your request, based on the above policy.

The morning after the party, Geary had sent a memo to all legislators and staff members:

Dear Legislators and Legislative Staff;
May this email serve as a friendly reminder that the Terry Miller gymnasium is currently set up as a meeting space with fragile a/v equipment, an expensive stage — which was set up for a possible joint floor session, and chairs set up for socially distanced meetings. There is a process in place to reserve the gym, which is to contact my office at 465-3800 or by email at Gym.Schedu|e@ak|eg.gov. Ifthere is no existing reservation, you may play ping pong or shoot hoops, as long as doing so doesn’t interfere with the gym setup and you clean up after yourself. There are general rules and guidelines for the gym, as well as a reservation calendar, which can be found on the Executive Director’s intranet page.

Also as a reminder, per Legislative Council policy, legislative buildings are closed to the public and there is nobody authorized to be in legislative facilities that hasn’t gone through the legislature’s COVID-19 testing and screening protocols. Further, it is a violation of policy to lend someone your keycard so they can gain access to a legislative building and you should not hold the door open to let people in that don’t have a keycard. Those needing access without a keycard should call Security at 465-1414. Thank you everyone for your cooperation and understanding. Have a wonderful Easter weekend. Best regards,
Jessica

During the party, one of the members gave her key card to a companion to go get more beer, a violation of building policy, prompting the executive director of the agency to remind legislators and staff to not allow the public into the building or loan their key cards to others.

Since Must Read Alaska can’t show readers the actual video of legislators leg wrestling with a blogger and others, we have found a generic leg-wrestling video to explain the nuances of the game:

Back story: The Lora Show antics stopped Senate hearing, delayed session

Suzanne Downing
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Back story: The Lora Show antics stopped Senate hearing, delayed session

A meeting last week of the Senate Health and Social Services Committee was abruptly adjourned by Sen. David Wilson after the nonpartisan staff assigned to the meeting walked out.

Sen. Lora Reinbold had pulled her mask down for several minutes. That much is visible on the video of the meeting. The legislative staff has been instructed to leave a room, if that happens. There is a mask mandate in the Capitol and at least one staffer came perilously close to being put on a ventilator after contracting Covid this session, likely in the building.

While the committee was hearing an amendment by Sen. Tom Begich to a bill, Reinbold pulled her mask down, and left it down for several minutes, while the legislative staff could be seen growing increasingly restless.

Finally, Chair David Wilson called for an at-ease. At that point, the legislative cameras stopped recording sound, but video shows a lively discussion ensuing between the senators.

Those in the room said that Reinbold berated the staff members and said if they were not comfortable working with her when her mask was down, they could look for work elsewhere. They were not the boss of her. After a few minutes, Rep. Wilson called the three staffers back into the room so that he could legally adjourn the meeting.

Watch the end of the meeting here:

The incident may have been the last straw for the Senate Republican-led caucus, which removed Reinbold from the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday morning.

In Judiciary earlier this month, Reinbold also refused to wear her mask and, once again, the legislative staff left the room and that meeting came to a halt.

Reinbold said on the Senate floor that she is blameless and has led the Judiciary Committee well. Before the floor session, she kept her mask off, in defiance of the rules for the Capitol. Last week, she was fined $250 for flouting the mask rule. Legislators and staff don’t have to wear masks while they are in their individual offices, but do when they are in shared spaces in the building, which is cramped and not well ventilated.

People in the building say that the general disrespect Reinbold has shown to staff and colleagues in the Capitol have not been well-received. A main agreement of the majority caucus is that “you don’t beat up on your teammates, and she repeatedly beats up on Republicans on social media,” said one member. She accused Sen. David Wilson of being in the pocket of the governor, has insulted Sens. Peter Micciche, Mia Costello, Shelley Hughes.

For Wilson, it was not about the mask, but that one person has been holding up the business of the entire session, delaying legislation. The session is now past its 90th statutory day and Wilson said no one person should be able to do cause such delays.

Although she lost her committee chair in Judiciary, Reinbold was not kicked out of the Republican caucus and is still vice chair of State Affairs and Legislative Council.

Breaking: Sen. Reinbold bounced from Judiciary chair

Covid incentive: City to pay $132,000 for workers to take 4-hour vaccination leave

Suzanne Downing
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Covid incentive: City to pay $132,000 for workers to take 4-hour vaccination leave

The Municipality of Anchorage will spend over $190,000 so that each employee can take four hours of paid leave in order to get a Covid-19 vaccine.

In an analysis done by the director of internal audit at the request of Assembly member Jamie Allard, the vaccine leave cost projection was based on a average salary of $30 an hour and would cover all city workers who are part of a union, including Anchorage Municipal Employees Association; International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 1547; Public Employees, Local 71; International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 302; United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry, Local 367; and Teamsters, Local 959. More than 1,000 workers would be covered by the special dispensation.

“Instead of paying an employee $120 to work for four hours (4 x $30 an hour), the employee will be paid the same $120 for four hours of non-cashable leave (4 x $30 an hour). Therefore, whether the employee works or uses non-cashable leave the monetary value is the same,” the audit said.

The leave premium will be in effect if the Assembly passes it at next Tuesday’s meeting, according to the agenda.

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