Parents outraged after NJ school board rejects 'trash' sociology textbook: 'Censorship' both 'unwanted,' 'unneeded'
BASKING RIDGE, N.J. (CITC) — Parents are accusing a New Jersey school board of abusing its power by refusing to purchase a sociology textbook that members felt was promoting an "ideology."
The Bernards Township School District (BTSD) school board voted to reject using textbook "The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology" for its advanced placement courses last month. Despite already being approved by BTSD teachers and students, the majority of the board felt the textbook painted an ideological picture of sociology.
The book is reportedly already being used in several other school districts across New Jersey.
School board members raised concerns over various contents of the textbook, including its discussion of women's rights and the impact of voter identification laws on minority groups. One board member, Kevin Rascio, criticized the portrayal of the 2014 Missouri police shooting death of Michael Brown, calling it inaccurate.
I'm not a cop, but I can recognize a murder when I see one.I'm not a teacher, but I can recognize an opinion piece when I see one," BTSD school board member Kevin Rascio said prior to the April 24 vote. "This book is just a straight-on opinion piece.It’s trash, for lack of a better term."
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However, parents gathered at Monday night's school board meeting to say that the decision "depressed" them.
My kids want you to know that their classroom debates are robust, and your censorship is both unwanted and unneeded," one mother of two told the BTSD school board Monday. "You don't need to shield them from varying points of view. Restricting ideas is reductive to our democracy."
One BTSD high schooler agreed, calling the board's vote an "abuse of power" and "code for I don't want students to learn that racism is bad."
Several parents felt that the board's rejection of a pre-approved textbook demonstrated a clear lack of trust in BTSD teachers.
I really feel truly saddened for the teachers that they're dealing with board members who are micromanaging and undermining their expertise," another mother said, adding that BTSD now has a responsibility to "rectify" its relationship with teachers.
Monday night's meeting ended with"The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology" ultimately still rejected by the BTSD school board.
Crisis in the Classroom (CITC) reached out to BTSD for comment, but did not receive a response prior to publication. This story will be updated if a response is received.