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By Curt Levey Posted in Holidays — Comments (2) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

While on the subject of Thanksgiving (see previous post), I was both amused and disturbed to hear that the Seattle School District sent a letter to teachers and other staff, telling them "Thanksgiving can be a difficult time for many native students." The letter references the "myth" that "Thanksgiving is a happy time" and advises the staff that Thanksgiving is a "time of mourning" for many Indian people, and a "reminder of 500 years of betrayal."

This from the same Seattle School District whose web site, until recently, included some bizarre statements about race—for example:

1) "Future time orientation"—planning ahead—is a white characteristic that it is racist to expect minorities to exhibit.

2) "Cultural racism" includes "emphasizing individualism as opposed to a more collective ideology" and "defining one form of English as standard."

3) Only whites can be racists.

4) The district has no intention "to hold onto unsuccessful concepts such as [a] . . . colorblind mentality."

Once it was pointed out that these statements are a great example of why local officials shouldn’t be given deference under the Equal Protection Clause, the school district took the statements down so as not to jeopardize their chances in Parents Involved v. Seattle School District. The Supreme Court struck down the race-based student assignment plan at issue anyway.