Let the Parents Speak

Suddenly, K-12 education has become a major issue in America. Over the past two years, the number of children being homeschooled has nearly doubled from 2.5 million to close to 5 million. And contrary to the stereotype of homeschoolers as either hippies or evangelicals, the percentages of black, Latino, and Asian parents homeschooling are higher than for the general population.

Unquestionably, COVID-19 was the catalyst for much of the explosion in homeschooling, at least in part because during the home learning imposed by lockdowns, parents could see for the first time what and how their children were being taught. Many white parents were not enthusiastic about their children being schooled in their “white privilege” over a century and a half since the Emancipation Proclamation, and a sizeable number of black parents did not want their children turned into perpetual “victims.”

Some parents have opposed the ending of honors classes in the name of “equity” and others the imposition of mask mandates.

Across the board, parents have been horrified by their young children being encouraged to explore their gender identity, asked for their preferred pronouns, and exposed to explicit material. Scenes of irate parents at school board meetings reading from the texts that their children have been assigned have become a staple of the nightly news.