A school administrator in Texas told teachers during a training session to present an “opposing” view if they teach books about the Holocaust.
According to a recording of an Oct. 8 training session obtained by NBC News, Gina Peddy, the Carroll Independent School District’s executive director of curriculum and instruction, told teachers, “Just try to remember the concepts of [House Bill] 3979.”
As the outlet explains, Peddy was “referring to a new Texas law that requires teachers to present multiple perspectives when discussing ‘widely debated and currently controversial’ issues.”
“And make sure that if you have a book on the Holocaust that you have one that has an opposing, that has other perspectives,” Peddy said.
One teacher asked, “How do you oppose the Holocaust?”
“Believe me, that’s come up,” Peddy responded.
The training session reportedly came after the school board reprimanded a fourth-grade teacher after a parent complained that the educator had an anti-racism book in her classroom.
Listen to the audio below:
A school administrator in Southlake, Texas, advised teachers last week that if they have a book about the Holocaust in their classroom, they should also have a book with an "opposing" perspective.
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 15, 2021
Listen to the audio recording obtained by @NBCNews: https://t.co/uoUrfYzPjs pic.twitter.com/ztOzPr8ovO
Karen Fitzgerald told NBC News, “Our district recognizes that all Texas teachers are in a precarious position with the latest legal requirements.”
“Our purpose is to support our teachers in ensuring they have all of the professional development, resources, and materials needed. Our district has not and will not mandate books be removed, nor will we mandate that classroom libraries be unavailable,” she added.
And in a statement on Thursday, Lane Ledbetter, the superintendent of the school district, said, “During the conversations with teachers during last week’s meeting, the comments made were in no way to convey that the Holocaust was anything less than a terrible event in history.”
“Additionally, we recognize there are not two sides of the Holocaust. As we continue to work through implementation of HB3979, we also understand this bill does not require an opposing viewpoint on historical facts,” the statement continued.
Finally, Ledbetter said, “As a district we will work to add clarity to our expectations for teachers and once again apologize for any hurt or confusion this has caused.”
