Tucson is a community in turmoil. It has been tied in knots for more than a year over the issue of how best to educate its children in a world of shrinking resources and high poverty.

Propagandists—both pro and con—have embroiled locals in continuous debate over the merits of the Mexican American Studies (MAS) program in the Tucson Unified School District (TUSD). Fanning the flames of hatred and hyperbole, supporters and detractors have distributed MAS facts and myths nationwide through blogs, newspapers, public appearances, radio broadcasts, e-mail blasts, and social media. Charges of racism and white privilege are hurled at those who ask for program evaluation data or information on course content; from the right, MAS instructors are called “bullies” and “thugs” who are indoctrinating children with Marxism and hatred.

On January 10, 2012, rather than face a $15 million fine, the TUSD Governing Board voted to not fight the state’s legal ruling against the MAS program. MAS was found to be in violation of state law banning any school curriculum that promotes resentment against a race or class of people, is designed primarily for one ethnic group, and advocates for ethnic solidarity, a law that was created by former Superintendent of Public Instruction and current state Attorney General Tom Horne specifically to bring down the MAS program.

Contrary to what you may read in other blog posts, in Save Ethnic Studies e-mail blasts or on facebook, this law did not ban Ethnic Studies and it didn’t eliminate Mexican American Studies in other school districts (like Sunnyside). The law (which I hope will be found to be unconstitutional) was finely targeted by Horne and the Arizona Legislature to take down the MAS program in TUSD.

Although MAS was created to improve dropout rates among Latino students and may, in fact, do that at least among low income students (see graphics below), the program had been serving fewer than 1 percent of the 32,000 Latinos enrolled in TUSD. Since school year 2000-01, MAS has served 8656 Latino students and 1107 students of other ethnicities, according to data provided by the TUSD Governing Board. Between fall 2000 and fall 2010, Latino enrollment in MAS ranged from 153 to 1002 per semester, with an average of 412 students taking at least one MAS class per semester. During this same time period, the percentage of Latino students enrolled in TUSD increased as white students left the inner city district. In 1996-97, 45.4 percent of TUSD students were white, and 41.8 percent were Latino. In 2010-11, the breakdown had shifted to 28.9 percent white and 56.2 percent Latino.

What has MAS in its current format done for the thousands of Latinos in TUSD who are not taking their classes?

What about the Latinos in TUSD who are not Mexican American? Are they being served?

Does TUSD need another Blue Ribbon Panel like the one that created MAS in 1999? My personal opinion is: YES. Pasting some Mexican American information and history into other classes won’t cut it. For several reasons fighting to keep the MAS status quo also doesn’t cut it:

1) The MAS reach was too small to make a significant impact on overall graduation rates (one of the original goals);

2) Non-Mexican Latinos, refugees, and other ethnic minorities are not being served by the current Ethnic Studies structure (ie, Mexican-American Studies, African American Studies, Native American Studies, and Pan-Asian Studies);

3) There is conflicting evaluation data.

4) Gender has been ignored in many MAS and TUSD academic achievement analyses. (Graduation rates and academic achievement among boys in the US has plummeted and continues to decline. This is a trend that will have serious negative consequences on the fabric on American society if left unaddressed.)

Yes, there are many, many anecdotal stories from individual students about the value of the MAS classes. Let’s build on the positive aspects of MAS– the impact on low-income students (see graphics below), the self-esteem-building, the small class sizes, and the high teacher involvement. No program is beyond improvement.

What can we as a community to do ensure a quality education for all public school students? Let’s stop the name-calling, stop the incendiary e-mail blasts, stop the hype, and come together– all of us.

On this anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, let’s make a commitment to start talking and start building a better future for all children, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, gender, or sexual orientation.

For some insight into MAS program evaluation and the challenges facing TUSD as it moves forward, check out the following data slides, which were prepared from data provided by TUSD.

TUSD enrollment shows that the percentage of white students in the district has declined steadily. In the 1996-97 school year, the district was 45.5% white and 41.8% Hispanic, with the remainder made up of the other races. By 2010-11, the percentage of white students in TUSD had dropped to 28.9% and the Hispanic proportion has risen to 56.2%. Overall enrollment in TUSD also declined during this time period. The percentages of Native Americans, African Americans, and Asian Americans did not change significantly.

In TUSD, there is a wide income gap between white and Latino students, with 80% very high income students being white and 70% of the very low income students being Latino.

In the last 10 years, overall enrollment of Latinos and non-Latinos in MAS classes has been low, compared to overall TUSD enrollment. An average of 412 Latinos per semester have enrolled in at least one MAS class since 2000-01 school year, while an average of 53 non-Latinos per semester have enrolled in at least one MAS class. Over the 10-year period, 8656 Latino students and 1107 students of other ethnicities/races took at least one MAS class. Currently, 32,000 Latino students are enrolled in TUSD.

This slide shows MAS and non-MAS enrollment by income level. Income definitions are derived from participation in federally subsidized school lunch programs + census track data.

Do MAS classes improve graduation rates among Latino students? The graduation rate among MAS students (in red) is higher than that of non-MAS students in the low and very low income groups but not in other income groups. The total numbers of MAS graduates in each group is relatively small: 10 in the very high income group; 39 in the high income group; 117 in the medium income group; 150 in the low income group; and 57 in the very low income group. When graduation rates of all students-- regardless of income, ethnicity, or gender-- are analyzed, the MAS effect disappears.

When the data are not broken down by race/ethnicity, gender or income, students who have taken at least one MAS class appear to have a slightly higher graduation rate compared with students who never took an MAS class. As with the previous graphic, the total number of MAS students is small.

This graphic shows AIMS test scores for students who took at least one MAS class (blue bars) vs those who never took an MAS class (red/pink bars). These data have been broken down by income but not by race/ethnicity or gender.

In an editorial this past Saturday, the Arizona Daily Star took aim at Mexican American Studies (MAS) Program Director Sean Arce for canceling the annual Tucson Unified School District (TUSD) Mexican American Students Awards Ceremony, a 10-year tradition.

Thanks to information provided to them by MAS supporters, just a few days earlier, the Star broke the story of the TUSD personnel action against Arce for canceling the event. Apparently, Arce took it upon himself to cancel the long-standing tradition to honor all Mexican American students without consulting his supervisor, Assistant Superintendent Lupita Cavazos-Garcia. In May, Cavazos-Garcia met with him, encouraged him to have the event on May 21, and offered resources. From the Star…

The following morning Cavazos-Garcia emailed Arce asking if he had secured a location [for the ceremony]. Arce responded with four reasons the district shouldn’t reschedule and noted that he would be in California that weekend speaking about Mexican American Studies at a conference [which was actually a Save Ethnic Studies fundraising event].

The reasons cited were: the certificates of recognition already had been sent out to students; the Mexican American Studies Department wouldn’t be able to put in the effort required to put on the ceremony; any attempt to reschedule would be interpreted as halfhearted and disingenuous; and dozens of parents of Mexican American Studies students were extremely upset because of developments surrounding the program, so rather than allow for an escalation of a delicate situation, he believed that it was best to let cooler heads prevail.

Arce disobeyed his supervisor’s direct request, and this, in turn, led to official disciplinary action against him.

The Star’s Saturday editorial strongly supported Cavazos-Garcia’s action, and so do I.

So it’s puzzling why the program director, Sean Arce, would unilaterally decide to scrap the traditional end-of-the-year awards ceremony that honors the achievements of Latino students. He has been reprimanded for the decision, and we believe rightly so, because canceling the celebration robbed the community of the chance to come together and celebrate the hard work and well-deserved honors the kids have earned.

If the true purpose of the Mexican American Studies program is, as its literature states, to lift students up through education, to help them forge strong community bonds and develop pride in themselves and their roots, then they should have the opportunity to do that.

If the Mexican American Studies program exists to further the political and academic careers of the adults involved, then they should be upfront about those goals. Canceling the awards ceremony takes the focus away from the kids, and puts it on the adults, where it doesn’t belong…

Caught in the middle are the tens of thousands of students in TUSD schools who are in need of a good education that will prepare them for college or work and make sure they have a sense of belonging.

A relatively small percentage of high school students find this connection in the MAS classes, but the need is much greater.

So it is distressing that Arce, the MAS program director, took it upon himself to cancel an event that affected a large number of students – not only kids who take the MAS classes, but all Latino kids.

I think the Star’s editorial writer was spot on. I think using the right-wing’s approval or disapproval of the ceremony as an excuse not to hold it is lame. High school graduation is a major right of passage for students and their parents. Arce’s action diminished their experience; the disciplinary action is wholly justified.

As the result of the 2010 US Census, Arizona and other states are in the midst of redistricting.

On Monday, the Arizona Daily Star printed a relatively routine article about how little the Pima County supervisors’ districts will likely change in the future– Redistricting likely to shift supervisor areas slightly. If you didn’t read the jump text on this article, you would have missed some interesting facts about voter registration and the county redistricting committee.

The five-member panel tasked with the chore [county-level redistricting] – each member an appointee of one of the sitting supervisors – confronted a choice last week, when it gathered for its second meeting to begin redrawing lines.

The first option: Members could start with a blank slate, essentially using the county’s population center at Park Avenue and 18th Street as a starting point, and continue until the county was sliced into five shapes.

Or they could keep the lines essentially the way they are, with little modification.
On a 3-2 vote, with the Republican appointees on the losing end, they voted to keep the lines the way they are.

Much of the discussion boiled down to race, since, as a consequence of historical discrimination, the U.S. Justice Department has to OK all electoral changes that affect minority voting.

There are two districts currently that have a majority of minority residents. In District 2, represented by Ramón Valadez, minority voters make up 66 percent of its population. In District 5, represented by Richard Elías, minority voters make up 63 percent.

Elías appointee Augustine Romero, the former director of the Tucson Unified School District’s embattled Ethnic Studies program, said it made sense to stick more or less with the current configuration, since the Justice Department already signed off on it. Any redrawing of the lines based on some goal of statistical neutrality, he warned, could have the effect of disempowering minority voters.

But Supervisor Ray Carroll’s Republican appointee, Robert Fee, argued that putting race foremost may violate equal protection, urging his colleagues to instead let the district lines fall as they may. [Emphasis added.]

So, Pima County Supervisor and Mexican American Studies (MAS) Community Advisory Board Member Richard Elias appointed Director of Student Equity and Ethnic Studies Godfather and co-creator Augie Romero to the Pima County redistricting committee.

Elias has been an outspoken supporter of the No Compromise stance on the MAS reorganization plan– showing up at Tucson Unified School Board Meetings and giving fiery pro-MAS speeches like the one he delivered on May Day in Spanish. In turn, Augie Romero votes to protect Elias’ seat on the Pima County Board of Supervisors but he made the original motion to keep the boundaries basically the same as they are. I don’t know how this looks to you, but it sure looks like a classic case of “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine,” and I don’t like it.

The larger question is: Why have a sham Pima County redistricting committee made up of five friends of the five Pima County Supervisors? Obviously, as Mark Evans pointed out a few weeks ago, the committee’s structure has been rigged to secure the incumbents’ seats on the Board of Supervisors. Is democracy being served?

In the spirit of full disclosure, I usually agree with Elias’ politics– especially his pro-union stances– but I have been sorely disappointed with the lack of leadership from him and Tucson City Councilwoman Regina Romero (also an MAS Community Advisory Board member) on the MAS reorganization debate and the divisive nature of the rhetoric (1, 2) that has been tearing our community apart recently.

I don’t care if Richard Elias and Regina Romero personally support the No Compromise stance. As Latino leaders in this community they should rise above their personal opinions and show some leadership by working to bring all stakeholders to the table for civil discourse– rather than taking sides.

On Monday of this week, Tucson Unified School District (TUSD) Superintendent John Pedicone sent conciliatory letters to two groups integrally involved in the fight to save TUSD’s Mexican American Studies (MAS) program from being reorganized– the MAS Community Advisory Board and UNIDOS (the young adult activists group who chained themselves to the school board dias and shut down the April 26 board meeting).

In nearly identical letters which were meant to smooth tensions, Pedicone said he urged the school board to table the controversial reorganization plan and asked to meet with the two groups.

Buried in the middle of today’s Arizona Daily Star is a follow-up story which states that neither group has responded Pedicone’s letters.

TUSD Superintendent John Pedicone has reached out to supporters of the Mexican American Studies program in an effort to improve relations.

Pedicone sent letters Monday to the youth-formed coalition Unidos and to the Mexican American Studies Community Advisory Board asking for an opportunity to speak and listen to one another.
He said he has yet to hear back from them.

Relations between the groups and the district have been strained since former Arizona schools chief Tom Horne declared the Mexican American Studies program in violation of state law.

In my article about the letters, I stated that I supported Pedicone’s suggestion to table the reorganization plan, and I hoped that UNIDOS and the MAS Board would accept his peace offering. Sadly, five days later, they haven’t.

UNIDOS and the Latino activists, educators, and politicians (Councilwoman Regina Romero and Pima County Supervisor Richard Elias) on the MAS Board should put down their sabres and step up to the table for an open discussion with Pedicone, representatives from the Center for Civility and Understanding, and others. They also should be willing to participate in a community forum– where everyone is allowed to speak– not just those who shout the loudest.

The time for fighting and divisive language by MAS supporters– including their attack dog blogger– is over. This behavior is tearing our community apart.

It has been reported that soon– maybe even later today– State Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal will announce his finding regarding MAS compliance or non-compliance with HB2281 (the legislation that started all of this last summer when governor Brewer signed it). If MAS and TUSD are found to be out of compliance, the district will be fined 10%– in the neighborhood of $15 million. On facebook, MAS supporters are calling for TUSD to ignore the fine and fight the state in court. There are too many questions about exactly what is being taught in the MAS classes; there has been anything but transparency.

I think it would be fiscally irresponsible for TUSD to lose $15 million– enough to fund 500 new teachers– over this battle. TUSD has to think about all of the 50,000 students it serves; they should not bow to the tyranny of the minority.

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John Pedicone, the much-maligned Tucson Unified School District (TUSD) Superintendent, has extended an olive branch to the supporters of the Mexican American Studies Program.

On Monday, in nearly identical letters– one to UNIDOS (the young adult activists group who chained themselves to the school board dias and shut down the April 26 board meeting) and the Mexican American Studies Community Advisory Board– Pedicone said that “actions taken by the district have resulted in high levels of concern and, in many cases, frustration[understatement of the year].” He goes on to say that he has recommended that the TUSD board withdraw the proposal to reorganize Ethnic Studies, brought forth by Mark Stegeman, TUSD board president.

The intensity of the discussion has reached a point where it makes it difficult to consider any resolution at this time. [duh] The deep-seated feelings surrounding this program, either as a result of a strong affiliation to its purpose or, in other cases, a rejection of the premise for its inclusion has created a counter-productive atmosphere that must be changed.

This is a smart move by Pedicone, and I hope the board takes his suggestion. The hate speech fueled by a continuous blogging drumbeat and media blitz on radio and social media often distorted the intent of the proposal and blew the situation way out of proportion. On the day that Osama bin Laden– the world’s most wanted man was captured and killed– what was on the front page of the TucsonCitizen.com? Five stories related to Mexican American Studies.

Since the April 26 board room takeover, there have been several calls for civil discourse to bring out the facts surrounding the Mexican American Studies debate and allow for open discussion with respect from all sides (1, 2, 3, 4). Maybe the hate speech and spin will stop for a while, so this can be accomplished– before Attorney General Tom Horne and State Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal step in.

It’s time for radical love for humanity.

People send me links to interesting articles all the time– hoping I will write about the issues– but I have a life beyond the TucsonCitizen.com and can’t write about everything. Here are several interesting stories you also may find worth reading.

On the topic of Republicans…

Republicans Plan To Pay Off The Deficit By Literally Selling America
Are more toll roads in our future? How else can Republicans pay for further tax cuts for the rich?

Freedom From Regulation?
New UA Freedom Center funded by Koch brothers. That doesn’t sound like freedom to me.

Fiesta Bowl Scandal Update: The Navy Sinks ‘King’ Russell Pearce
Can scandal and the recall bring down Russell Pearce? Let’s hope so!

On the topic of ending the wars…

We Got Osama bin Laden – Now Let’s Get Out of Afghanistan
Congressman Raul Grijalva says, “Bring the boys home.” I couldn’t agree more.

On the topic of Latino voting…

Digging into Latino voter trends
The Latino voting rate is 18% below that of the Anglo population.

National Tequila Party Tour Will Kick Off in Arizona
Tequila Party encourages Latinos to vote.

On the topic of healthcare…

Why healthcare costs so much in the U.S.
Myths and facts about the US healthcare non-system– nice graphics!

The myth of undocumented immigrants using American health care
Dr. Keven debunks a popular myth.

Birth Control And Sexual Attraction – The Wall Street Journal’s Breathtakingly Bad Reporting
Better Health blog slams the Wall Street Journal for sexist reporting. (WSJ sexist? Imagine that.)

And on the topic of TUSD…

Comprehensive Annual Audit Report for the year ending June 2010
Very long budget report for last fiscal year– good reading if you’re in insomniac.

TUSD’s Desegregation Funding Summary FY10-11
This is hard to read but still interesting. You can see salaries, program funding, and school funding. It’s difficult to parse out specifics because some categories are so vague.

TUSD’s Ethnic Studies Audit: Institute for Transformative Education
Tucson Independent Daily examines the TUSD Board report from May 3, 2011. This gives the budget for the Mexican American Studies’ summer institute and a bit about the speakers. It seems to me that the budget is incomplete, since it primarily focus on speaker fees and stipends for attendees and doesn’t include other standard conference costs (room fees, audio-visual, travel expenses, etc.) but who knows. I’m surprised the Star didn’t cover this. Yes, some consider this a right-wing blog, but I have not seen this material covered anywhere else.

Loretta Hunnicutt on Glenn Beck
OK– a little spooky– but you have to see what the right is saying in order to organize against them. If you bury your head in the sand and try to ignore them, they’ll kick you in the ass.

US Congressman Raul Grijalva penned a moderate Op-Ed on ethnic studies for Sunday’s Arizona Daily Star:

Political Fight over Ethnic Studies Should Never Have Been Ignited at All

In his commentary, he places the blame for the problems  facing TUSD squarely where it belongs– with the Arizona Legislature, Governor Jan Brewer, and Attorney General Tom Horne. He ends the piece with a call for public comment, fairness, and due process…

Thankfully, TUSD has avoided premature decisions about the fate of the program. We need to let the legal, administrative and public comment processes run their courses. All of us, whatever our background, share the American history and values of fairness, democracy and due process.

That’s what we need here, not more overheated rhetoric.

Ironically, two days before Grijalva’s piece appeared, I also called for continued free and open public dialogue and less “overheated rhetoric.”

Focusing so intensely on this one small program is clouding the bigger picture: Education in Arizona is in trouble, and public education nationwide is under attack. As long as were fighting and drawing lines in the sand, nothing will progress. We need full transparency, and we need a public forum where everyone’s voices can be heard– not just those who shout the loudest. We need to come together to fix this– or Tom Horne will fix it for us.

From the Arizona Daily Star…

A former TUSD teacher and opponent of Mexican-American Studies has filed a defamation lawsuit against the district and two of its employees.

The lawsuit, filed by John Ward on Monday, names the Tucson Unified School District along with Mexican-American Studies Director Sean Arce and Jose Gonzalez, a curriculum specialist.

Ward is seeking damages for harm to his reputation and for mental pain and suffering; compensatory and punitive damages; and other relief as the court deems proper.
He alleges that defamatory statements by Arce and Gonzalez have damaged his reputation as an educator.

The lawsuit stems from statements made late last year in which Arce and Gonzalez reportedly said that Ward was removed from a Mexican-American Studies classroom because he had used profanity and was slamming books in front of students – statements that Ward says are false.

Ward argues that while employed at TUSD, he was recognized as an outstanding teacher. But conflict arose when he began voicing opposition to instruction in his U.S. history class that was to be taught from the Mexican-American perspective.

He felt that rather than teaching American history, the students were being taught a politicized view of the mistreatment of Hispanics, the suit states.

Click here for the rest of the story.

I find it highly ironic that this story appear in the Star on the same day I posted this story about stopping the smear spin and reporting the news accurately.
In Mexican American Studies debate, Tucsonans need less spin and more truth

One of my lifelong inspirations has been my journalism professor, mentor, and advisor at Ohio State:  Martha Brian, a lifelong newspaperwoman and one seriously tough customer.

I knew how to write when I took her entry level reporting class, but Ms. Brian taught me to be a journalist. She taught me to dig for the truth, stick to the facts, check my sources, write concisely, meet the deadlines, think on my feet, never accept anything at face value, and always ask questions.

Ms. Brian suffered no fools, and she could spot a slacker a mile away. Her class was the flunk-out class. As the gate-keeper of the School of Journalism at The Ohio State University, you had to pass her class in order to progress. As budding journalist, she hammered four primary rules into us:

1. News stories should be 100% factual– no excuses. If a student journalist wrote a story with any factual error, she gave them a zero for that story– regardless of how exciting the story or how beautifully it was written.
2. Journalists meet their deadlines. To teach us this, she locked the door of the class room when the bell rang. It didn’t matter if you were sprinting down the hall toward the door, you didn’t get in, and you got a zero for the day’s work. No make-ups. No excuses.
3. Journalists investigate stories and seek out credible sources. We were taught to ask questions– lots of questions. We investigated and wrote one original news story during every class period.
4. The public has a right to know the truth. And it’s a journalists job to tell them. We were instilled with the ideal that journalists should be beholden to no one– not corporations, not politicians, not religious groups, not advertisers, not political parties, not activist movements– because it was our job to be unbiased in our reporting of the news to the American people. (Remember, these were the days of Woodward and Bernstein.)

Oh, Ms. Brian, how times have changed.

It’s a good thing Ms. Brian isn’t alive to see the degradation of  our profession. I can see her now in heaven in her neatly tailored suit, well-manicured hair, and little pillbox hat– a scotch on the rocks in one hand and a cigarette in the other– shouting “Error of fact! Error of fact!” at the blogosphere, sneering at FOX News’ “fair and balanced” slogan, and cursing the disappearance of news print  and paid journalists.

Ms. Brian’s Legacy and the Mexican American Studies debate

In the spirit of my mentor and the public’s right to know the truth about Mexican American Studies (MAS) debate, I’m calling on fellow bloggers and journalists to:

1. Stick to the facts and forget the spin.
2. Don’t take anything at face value.
3. Ask more questions.
4. Fight for transparency.
5. Check multiple sources and cite those sources. (We are the storytellers– not the authorities.)
6. Drop the editorializing– unless, of course, you’re writing an editorial.
7. Stop the name-calling, the bullying, and the put-downs.

And, again in the spirit of Ms. Brian, here are a some of my unanswered questions about the MAS debate:

1. What is the real budget for the MAS program and the other programs under Ethnic Studies? I have seen three budget figures published– one provided by TUSD School Board President Mark Stegeman and two others published by the Three Sonorans. I want full transparency in the funding for this and other TUSD programs supported by the desegregation monies.
2. What does the evaluation data reveal? MAS supporters claim that the program has been evaluated and proven effective multiple times. The Arizona Daily Star reported that a TUSD statistician found no statistical difference in graduation rates when he compared MAS graduates with others in TUSD. Dr. Stegeman’s statement said it resulted in 10 more graduations per year over the three years studies. Where is the truth here? How many studies have been conducted? How were they conducted? Who conducted them? Was quantitative or descriptive (ie, more casual) data collected?  Where is the data published?
3. What text books are being used in the MAS classes? I think the MAS program should provide a complete list of text books– since the course content is coming under fire from the right wing. (They’re teaching communism! They’re teaching Chicano Nationalism!) MAS supporters claim that the right is “cherry-picking” inflammatory passages from the texts (watch the attached video for some doozies). OK, I wouldn’t put it past them to be using that tactic, but how does the public know what they are teaching when no book list has been provided?
4. What are the course descriptions for the MAS classes? The curriculum link on the MAS website is very vague. Surely, course descriptions exist. Why not make them public?
5. Why has the MAS Community Advisory Board backed away from TUSD’s public forum? After the takeover of the TUSD meeting on April 26, MAS supporters chided the TUSD board for not holding the following meeting at a larger location. Now that the TUSD board is willing to hold a public forum– so all voices can be heard– they’re backing away from a meeting that the University of Arizona MAS faculty (many of whom also serve on the MAS Community Advisory Board) called for. (I guess that link has now disappeared from the TucsonCitizen.com.)
6. While we’re on the subject of the MAS Community Advisory Board: Are their meetings open to the public? If so, how are they publicized? How are people appointed to this board? How long are their terms of service? Are board members compensated monetarily for their time? How often do they meet? Why is there no diversity on the board? What is their relationship to the MAS programs at the UA and TUSD and to the TUSD Board? What is their authority over a taxpayer-funded public school program? Mark Evans’ article from the Tucson Citizen morgue explained the origins of the MAS program and the advisory board, but I still have questions.
7. How do the multiple familial and collegial relationships through the past four decades and across the multiple MAS support groups impact what is unfolding? Reading the Tucson Weekly’s article about MAS program and Chicano Nationalism movement of the 1970s connected many dots for me. There is a lot of cross pollination out there.
8. And the bottomline: Has the MAS program improved graduation rates among Latino youth? The 1998 article said the Latino dropout rate was 8.33%. What is it today?

And, finally, what is being done to help the tens of thousands of TUSD students who are not in MAS succeed? What is TUSD doing for those Mexican American, African American, Native American, refugee, mixed race, and poor non-minority students who need our help? Focusing so intensely on this one small program is clouding the bigger picture: Education in Arizona is in trouble, and public education nationwide is under attack. As long as were fighting and drawing lines in the sand, nothing will progress. We need full transparency, and we need a public forum where everyone’s voices can be heard– not just those who shout the loudest. We need to come together to fix this– or Tom Horne will fix it for us.

UPDATE: And while we’re on the accuracy in reporting theme, check out this story. MAS smear campaigns have resulted in a defamation of character lawsuit.
TUSD’s Ethnic Studies Saga Continues: John Ward files lawsuit against TUSD

You know how Internet surfing goes. You click here, click there and all of a sudden, you’re not in Kansas anymore. Well, that happened to me today.

I followed a few links and stumbled upon two blog posts related to John Munger’s interpretation of what is being taught in Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican American Studies (MAS) Programs. (In case you don’t know who Munger is, he’s a bigwig lawyer, former Republican candidate for governor in 2010, and former head of the Arizona GOP.)

Basically, Munger requested copies of MAS text books and wrote a critique of the curriculum based upon the text books. In his original blog post from January 2011 and in the abbreviated recent post on The Cholla Jumps blog, Munger makes a strong case that MAS courses are teaching communism. Earlier this week, I ran across this video claiming the same thing: MAS courses are teaching communism. (The Three Sonorans also stumbled upon this video and linked it here.) Now, I’m not much of a conspiracy theorist, but without even trying, I stumbled upon 3 conservative blog posts pushing the same communist indoctrination story.

Here is an excerpt from Munger’s analysis…

What they [MAS text books] did provide was a showpiece of classical Marxist oriented indoctrination of cultural and political oppression, incessant deprecation of anything not “Chicano,” including the US Constitution, capitalism, and European culture. Students are taught that they are part of an oppressed minority of “indigenous” people (how those who are principally Mexican in background are “indigenous to the Southwestern US is not explained), whose lands (California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas) have been stolen by the Europeans and should be taken back as a separate “Chicano” nation they call “Atzlan.”

They want political separation from the US based almost entirely on race and based on a Marxist economic model. Students are taught (sometimes subtly and sometimes expressly) that their “indigenous” culture has been corrupted by the predominant European culture of the US, that “Chicanos” should refuse to assimilate and instead should come together in “colonies” to exercise maximum political power until they are able to retake “Atzlan” as a separate nation— an explicitly “bronze” nation, incidentally, based almost entirely on racial profiling.

In the meantime they should recognize that capitalism is corrupt and they should work towards complete redistribution of wealth; that everyone is entitled to a home, healthcare, reasonably equal income, etc. Presumably Atzlan would be a place where Communism would finally, and happily, flourish.

Having read the books the students must read, as well as the Principles and philosophies of MEChA, I found many interesting quotes and facts.

First, there is NO book presenting American History generally, nor even the standard view of Southwestern American History—ALL the books speak solely from the point of view of the oppressed “Chicano,” with no effort to teach alternative thought or facts.

Second, the concepts and language in the materials is, frankly, classic Marxist indoctrination based on oppression and inculcation of hatred of anyone European or who might identify themselves as an American…

The results of this indoctrination are astounding. I have a photograph of one student of this program carrying a sign and protesting recently. The sign held by this student shouts in bold letters: “Dumb F*** Gringos. You Are Standing in Mexico Right Now!” Anyone who does not believe that racism, hatred, apartheid, and Marxism are being actively promulgated in these programs should think again. Every Arizonan should take the time to evaluate exactly what is being taught our children, with taxpayer money, in these Ethnic Studies programs and MecHa. [Emphasis added.]

This communism charge is significant because Arizona has laws on the books specifically prohibiting teaching communism– Arizona Revised Statute (ARS) 16-805. Arizona law has a lot to say about keeping us safe from communist indoctrination, but 16-805D is the real kicker. Basically, Arizona recognizes academic freedom– except when it comes to teaching communism.

D. It is the public policy of this state to protect the safety of the constitutional government of the state of Arizona by constitutional means and at the same time protect the rights of the members of our free society to speak, to assemble and to inquire, including the principle of academic freedom which by fostering healthy self-criticism is especially vital in the progress of man’s moral values and in man’s exploration of the secrets of the atom on this planet and in outer space. To protect the safety of this state and the right of free citizens in a free society to inquire and to understand totalitarianism, it is essential that the schools, colleges and universities teach objectively and critically the governmental and social forms of past and present totalitarian slave states, including the foreign languages spoken therein. The rights set forth in this subsection do not include the right to embrace Communism or to attempt to persuade others to embrace Communism. [Emphasis added.]

What makes all of this so dangerous for MAS is that to bring down the program the enemies don’t need HB2281 (the racist bill specifically targeting MAS and signed into law in 2010). You’ll remember that HB2281 is being challenged in court by a group of MAS teachers from TUSD. The teachers could win the battle– their discrimination suit– but lose the war if the right wingers make these communist indoctrination charges stick– either legally or in the public psyche.

These are the true enemies of MAS– not people who want to make some courses into electives. All of the wrangling about School Board President Mark Stegeman’s proposal to reorganize MAS could be irrelevant in the coming months.

Here are the three links if you want to read the full text of the stories or the law.
TUSD Mexican-American Studies curriculum examined by John Munger is a new post on the Cholla Jumps blog. (You remember him. He used to be on the Citizen.)

TUSD Ethnic Studies: A Report of My Review of Textbooks and Program is the original post by Munger.

16-805. Findings of fact and statement of public policy by the legislature of the state of Arizona concerning steps which must be taken to protect the fundamental rights of the citizens of this state and the safety of this state from international Communistic conspiracy is the link to the Arizona Revised Statute.