'White privilege' lesson in California choir class 'created division and confusion,' parent says

DANVILLE, Calif. (CITC) — A California mom claims her daughter was recently taught about "White privilege" during a choir class.

The parent alleged to the San Ramon Valley Unified School District school board Tuesday that the discussion was led by an "equity studies" teacher. The school district is currently working with an "equity teacher on special assignment," according to its website.

"As a parent of a choir student, having outside instruction regarding White privilege with the choir students was incredibly hurtful, demeaning and demeaning to many students in the class," the mom told the school board Tuesday. "It not only created division and confusion between the students, but it was also incorrect information."

The mom went on to claim that the teacher "stated that White people had no culture and any culture that they did have was stolen." She indicated that the school district has opened an investigation into the matter, and she thanked the school board for taking the "appropriate" steps.

READ MORE | 'Antiracism' book removed from NC school district classrooms: 'Develop opinions off of the facts'

"With that said, this is another reason that we are here asking for the board's help with parental transparency and communication," she said. "It is apparent that there are things that are being taught to our children where the district or the school does not provide a necessary opt-in or opt-out form for parents."

A spokesperson for the San Ramon Valley Unified School District told Crisis in the Classroom (CITC) Monday that a "guest teacher" discussed "content that was not applicable to choir instruction because it related to a non-school sponsored excursion to South Africa" with two separate choir classes recently.

"This content was not an appropriate topic for this class and may have been offensive to some of our students," the spokesperson told CITC, adding that the district expects "that class time be used for appropriate instruction."

CITC asked the San Ramon Valley Unified School District if it has opened an investigation into the matter, as the mother alleged Tuesday. The spokesperson said the district has "addressed this incident with our staff."

Earlier this year, San Ramon Valley parents were divided over other teachings in the school district. In February, parents claimed that a high school student received a zero on an assignment after refusing to read "Gender Queer," a book which has been removed from schools nationwide due to its sexually explicit content.

The matter sparked a debate over whether "Gender Queer" should be permitted in the San Ramon Valley Unified School District's libraries, with some parents asking why teachers would "subject" children to "plain and simple pornography."

READ MORE | Calif. parents claim student was failed for not reading 'Gender Queer,' demand book be removed

A spokesperson for the San Ramon Valley Unified School District told CITC at the time that the district had not received any formal complaints connected to the allegations. Additionally, a teacher within the district dismissed the claims at a school board meeting, saying that the community outrage was "started on false pretenses."

A formal process to remove "Gender Queer" from the San Ramon Valley Unified School District was ultimately not taken by the school board.