Once again, the New York Department of Education is in the word-banning business and is telling schools to ban dozens of words from use in the class room and on tests. And why are they banning the words? Because they might make kids "feel" bad. But, worse, some of the banned words would actually prevent learning!
One of the banned words, for instance, is "slavery." OK, so how do we discuss all of American history before the close of the Civil War if we are not allowed to use the word "slavery" in front of school kids? Just as bad, the words "war" and "religion" are also banned. There goes the rest of human history.
But maybe even worse, the DOE has banned the word "terrorism." So, how do we teach what happened on 9/11?... Ah, I know, we tell kids that George Bush did it and America is evil to those poor, poor Muslims, that's how.
NY Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott said the Dept. of Ed isn't "an outlier" and not being PC in the banning of words and that schools all across America do it (as if that makes it right).
"So we’re not an outlier in being politically correct. This is just making sure that test makers are sensitive in the development of their tests," Walcott said to the media in New York City.
A glance at the list below makes a liar of Mr. Walcott.
Here is a complete list of the banned words courtesy of CBS New York:
Abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological)
Alcohol (beer and liquor), tobacco, or drugs
Birthday celebrations (and birthdays)
Bodily functions
Cancer (and other diseases)
Catastrophes/disasters (tsunamis and hurricanes)
Celebrities
Children dealing with serious issues
Cigarettes (and other smoking paraphernalia)
Computers in the home (acceptable in a school or library setting)
Crime
Death and disease
Divorce
Evolution
Expensive gifts, vacations, and prizes
Gambling involving money
Halloween
Homelessness
Homes with swimming pools
Hunting
Junk food
In-depth discussions of sports that require prior knowledge
Loss of employment
Nuclear weapons
Occult topics (i.e. fortune-telling)
Parapsychology
Politics
Pornography
Poverty
Rap Music
Religion
Religious holidays and festivals (including but not limited to Christmas, Yom Kippur, and Ramadan)
Rock-and-Roll music
Running away
Sex
Slavery
Terrorism
Television and video games (excessive use)
Traumatic material (including material that may be particularly upsetting such as animal shelters)
Warner Todd Huston’s thoughtful commentary, sometimes irreverent often historically based, is featured on many websites such as Breitbart.com, among many, many others. He has also written for several history magazines, has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows.