Placentia-Yorba Linda is Orange County's first school district to ban the teaching of critical race theory (CRT) in its classrooms after a 3-2 vote among board members. School board President Carrie Buck cast one of the dissenting votes, saying more than 700 people in the district, including 105 students, had contacted her office to oppose the ban, while 160 people supported it.
But trustee Leandra Blades supports the measure, saying she wants a traditional curriculum that keeps politics out of the classroom.
Adjustments were made to the resolution after hearing from both sides of the debate. One of the adjustments made was that the resolution will not change the existing curriculum taught in advanced placement (AP) or international baccalaureate (IB) courses.
The ban doesn’t specify what would happen to someone who is caught teaching CRT. It also isn’t clear if CRT was even taught in district classrooms.
CRT is a framework that examines how racism and inequality are embedded in American laws, policies, and institutions.