John legend urges people to overwhelm a tip line set up by Virginia's new GOP governor to report teachers over critical race theory
- John Legend urged Black parents to overwhelm a new tip line set up by Virginia's governor.
- The line was set up so parents can report "divisive" teaching, such as critical race theory.
Singer John Legend urged Black parents to flood a new hotline set up by Virginia's Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin that is meant to gather examples of the teaching of critical race theory or other "divisive" subjects.
Since taking over the governor's house in Virginia this month, Youngkin launched a series of policies designed to push back against what he has characterised as the malign influence of liberals and bureaucrats on the school system.
He banned the teaching of critical race theory, an academic discipline that analyses structural racism, but which is not actually taught in the state's K-12 schools.
He also announced Monday that a tip line would be set up where parents can report the teaching of "divisive" subjects like that to state authorities.
In tweet Tuesday, Legend urged Black parents to make their voices heard, claiming that Youngkin's policies amount to an attempt to suppress the teaching of Black history.
"Black parents need to flood these tip lines with complaints about our history being silenced. We are parents too," he wrote.
Channeling conservative anger over coronavirus policies and the teaching of race were at the heart of Youngkin's campaign, which removed the governorship from the Democrats for the first time since 2014.
Nationally, opposition to critical race theory has become a rallying point for Republicans as they attempt to chart a course to victory in this year's mid-terms.
Conservatives say that the subject is divisive, and in a recent interview Youngkin referenced a recent case in which pupils at a Fairfax County high school were asked to complete a card identifying which privileged criteria they fulfilled.
But critics say Youngkin's efforts would stop issues such as racial injustice being taught in schools altogether, and have pointed to proposals in states including Texas to remove texts addressing race from school libraries.