South Texas Congressmen give their views on controversial textbook
South Texas Congressmen give their views on controversial textbook
By Steve Taylor
BROWNSVILLE, RGV – South Texas Congressmen Joaquin Castro and Filemon Vela have joined the debate over a controversial new textbook for Texas public schools, titled Mexican-American Heritage.
Castro and Vela say they support the stance of State Board of Education members Marisa Perez-Diaz and Ruben Cortez. Perez-Diaz and Cortez have been leading the fight to block the textbook from being approved for use in Texas high schools. They deem the textbook to be deceitful and hateful towards Mexican-Americans as well as academically insulting.
“The textbooks our kids read have a profound impact on their understanding of the world – their accuracy is of paramount importance. Texas has a special responsibility to ensure the books in our schools are factually correct. Given our state’s large size, textbook companies often print material Texas approves for students across the nation,” Castro and Vela said, in a joint statement.
“Despite the fact that Hispanics account for almost 40 percent of Texas’ population, they are nearly invisible in the current teaching of Texas and U.S. history in our state’s schools. To think that our State Board of Education might now accept a book that reinforces untrue, negative stereotypes of Hispanics – specifically Mexican Americans – is appalling. We stand with State Board of Education Members Marisa Perez and Ruben Cortez, and call on the entire State Board of Education to follow their lead, do what’s right, and block this textbook from ever appearing in a classroom.”
Castro, from San Antonio, represents the 20th Congressional District of Texas. Vela, from Brownsville, represents the 34th Congressional District of Texas. Perez’s district stretches from San Antonio all the way south to Starr County and western Hidalgo County. Cortez’s district is anchored in the Rio Grande Valley and includes Cameron County and the eastern half of Hidalgo County.
The State Board of Education held a public hearing on Mexican-American Heritage in Austin on Tuesday. Hundreds of Texans protested the book outside the SBOE’s building. Inside, dozens of academics challenged the veracity of the textbook.
Previously, SBOE board member Cortez asked a group of scholars to dissect the textbook. They found it to be “riddled with factual errors.” One of the scholars, Trinidad Gonzales, a history professor at South Texas College, told the Rio Grande Guardian:
“The proposed textbook represents a regression through the inclusion of racist materials that was rejected by the time of the 1970s and 1980s. The previous politics concerning minority contributions within social studies was simply to keep it silent. In other words, to not include it. Now we have gone to the politics of outright accepting racist material, which is regression.”
Asked if he was shocked by this turn of events, Gonzales said: “It is shocking because the current politics was simply in the closet. Apparently, you do not have to be in the closet any more in order to be a racist. You can now include it in textbooks. That is a departure.”
Cortez agreed with this analysis. “This textbook is a complete disaster and should not even be considered a ‘textbook’ but rather as a political manifesto aimed at distorting the perceptions of our most valuable resource – our children,” Cortez said.