There is a bill which got a hearing today in the Louisiana House Education Committee which is worth watching. It was authored by Rep. Ray Garofalo, who chairs the committee. The bill is HB 564, the Every Student is Equal Act, and it’s the first real effort by the Louisiana legislature to do something about the plague of critical race theory in Louisiana’s schools. Here’s what Garofalo said about it in a press release…

The Louisiana House Education Committee will hear HB 564, the “Every Student is Equal Act”, Tuesday, April 27th, beginning at 9:00am CDT in House Committee Room 1 (HCR-1).  According to bill sponsor, State Representative Ray Garofalo of Meraux, Louisiana, “Every student and employee in the Louisiana education system has the right to a learning environment that is free of discrimination.”   Garofalo explained, “This bill is about equality – not racial equity.  This bill addresses the growing concern of what many are calling the indoctrination of our children through racist and sexist programs in our schools’ education curricula and policies.”

Garofalo calls his bill the “Every Student is Equal Act” because it aims to treat all students equally, and prohibit the teaching of discriminatory programs that are based purely on the color of one’s skin or sex. The bill addresses the “divisive concepts” that are part of “Critical Race Theory” – a commonly referred to term that describes such discriminatory race-based programs and policies.

“The people of Louisiana, especially parents, need to understand that equality and equity are not the same thing,” stated Garofalo.  “Equality treats every student the same with equal respect, where no one is better than another because of their race, sex, or national origin.  On the other hand, equity subjects each student and school employee to a bias based on discrimination and segregation,” he continued.

“Equity seeks to separate people.  It allocates everything according to the color of one’s skin, or sex – and not the content of their character.  Separate is not equal,” Garofalo added.

He acknowledged that a misinformation campaign underway from opposition groups to intentionally misrepresent the “Every Student is Equal Act’” to the public.  Garofalo stated, “The opposition’s efforts to misinform the people of Louisiana and aggressively advance Critical Race Theory – which is rooted in Marxism – will only deepen divisiveness and crush students’ free speech. Instead of politicizing school curricula, we need to ensure that our schools are teaching content that fosters a civil society where everyone can flourish.”

Garofalo returned the bill to the calendar after a quick bit of testimony about it. That likely means it’ll generate an even larger controversy when it does come up for a committee vote.

Critical race theory, in case you’re not aware, is this “woke” philosophy which holds that America is a systemically racist country as founded, that white people are therefore racist at birth because they benefit from that system. You hear it from people like Ibram X. Kendi and Ta’Nehisi Coates, and it’s poison.

It preaches that your life is governed by your race, because if you’re black or hispanic your life is necessarily harder. Which is poison, and it’s a lie. This stuff is so insane that it teaches that things like politeness and a love of reading are “white culture.” Remember how good students in mostly-black schools are reviled for “acting white?” This crystallizes that stupidity into an academic discipline.

So the question is whether the legislators in this state have the stones to ban this garbage. They’ll get called racist, even though the bill is specifically targeted at eliminating racism. And what’s worst about critical race theory is that it’s a collectivist philosophy. Racism is collectivism. And collectivism, the kind of deterministic collectivism this involves, has no place in the education of an individual.

It’s important to get this defeatist, Marxist garbage out of our public schools. It’s the most important thing Louisiana can do to prevent our schools getting worse – something we absolutely can’t afford to have happen.

But all along it’s been said the Legislature really only wants to divvy up and spend Biden’s billions when the money rolls into the state treasury. Big fights like this, which will generate loud noises and nasty accusations from all the usual suspects, don’t make the leadership of the legislature happy.

But if Garofalo’s bill is killed, it’s going to show that the people who run the legislature don’t have the balls to take on hard questions. And Louisiana can’t afford spineless politicians right now. Not in the shape we’re in.