Tsedey Betru

College students aren’t falling for the latest right wing conspiracy

There isn’t much new about the Right’s latest attempt to take over college campuses, featured in today’s New York Times, except that this time around they’re cleverly throwing in a few “inclusive” materials, like Dr. King’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail into their curriculum to appear “nonideological”. The Manhattan Institute says their aim in directing $2.5 million in funding to these new programs is to work against the thrust of curricula in gender, race and class studies, “and try to influence the undergraduate curriculum.” But just as Republican pundits admittedly failed to infiltrate young minds in the last two decades, they will fail again today.

Why? Because young Americans today don’t want to learn the pretty picture version of our history, they want to learn the truth. And they don’t want to learn partisan rhetoric, they want to learn how to ask core questions...core questions that will enable them to unpack any issue and develop their own perspective. That’s what we do with our DMI Scholars. We train smart young activists to think critically, research and write about the issues that we care about. Check out our Scholars at www.dmischolars.org- you’ll see a diverse range of young leaders who weren’t simply given the progressive kool-aid, but who were given tools to make a clear analysis and articulation of their ideas about public policies.

Tsedey Betru: Author Bio | Other Posts
Posted at 4:59 PM, Sep 22, 2008 in Drum Major Institute | Education | Politics | Progressive Agenda | Progressives | Youth
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