creeping
via Islamic bias in Brevard textbook? Lawmaker, others raise questions |floridatoday.com. h/t Islamist Watch
Two Brevard School Board members are reviewing a world history
textbook used in ninth grade Advance Placement classes amid concerns
that it is biased in favor of Islam — at the expense of Christianity and
Judaism.
House Representative Ritch Workman and individuals from two citizens
groups spoke against the textbook, Prentice Hall World History, at the
Brevard School Board meeting Tuesday, citing examples of phrases and
passages they believe show bias.
“Our children deserve facts and accuracy, not history being revised
for our own failure or desire to not offend one culture or another,”
said Workman, a Republican from Melbourne.
The textbook, which has been used in Brevard for the past three
years, devotes a chapter to Islam, with sections including the rise of
Islam and the building of the Muslim empire. Conversely, Christianity
and Judaism do not have their own chapters and instead are referenced in
paragraphs embedded in other sections.
Workman also expressed concern about how historic events are
portrayed and what phrases are used. For example, he said the textbook
reads Jesus proclaims himself to be the Messiah but declares Muhammad
becomes a prophet.
School board members Amy Kneessy and Andy Ziegler promised to review
the textbook, which is published by Pearson, a well-known printer of
educational textbooks.
“No matter what the subject is, whether it’s math, English, science
or world history, students need to have accurate, unbiased information,”
Kneessy said. “If textbooks are unbiased or incomplete, it’s our job to
fix that.”
Pearson Spokeswoman Susan Aspey said the company and its authors
adhere to “the highest editorial standards when creating course
materials, which undergo a rigorous review process.”
“The textbook referenced was approved by the state of Florida and
meets all requirements for the High School World History Course,” she
wrote in an email. “A review of the book shows there is balanced
attention given to the beliefs of Islam, Judaism and Christianity.”
Ziegler said the underlining issue is accuracy and fairness — and should be investigated.
“When I went to school, I thought that the textbooks were gospel,” he
said. “If there is information in our textbooks that is incorrect, I
believe it needs to be correct.”
Robin Miller, who is going into her second year teaching at Eau
Gallie High School, said she noticed that the book referenced Islam more
than Christianity when she used it in class, but received no complaints
from students or parents. She teaches regular and honors world history.
“There was more discussion of the Muslim aspects, but I attributed it
to it being more focused on the world and other cultures than our own,”
she said.
Wilfredo Ruiz, an attorney for Florida Council on American-Islamic
Relations, believes the groups have an agenda in challenging textbooks
that present Islam in an objective way.
“They just want to create an environment of intolerance toward Muslims and an environment of hate against Islam,” he said.
Individuals who spoke at Tuesday’s school board meeting said their goal is for Brevard to adopt a more balanced textbook.
Bill Prince of Melbourne, a retired military colonel who has deployed
to a dozen different countries in the Middle East, told school board
members he fought side-by-side with Muslims — and against followers of
radical Islam.
“It is my considered opinion that the textbooks that our students are
using in Brevard County do not give a balanced view,” he said. “I think
it’s fine to explain the five pillars of Islam, but for us to whitewash
some of the really terrible things, about, especially, radical Islam,
does a great disservice.”
USA Today relies on the Hamas-linked, unindicted co-conspirator CAIR for comment. That’s how far they’ve infiltrated. More on Islamic infiltration in our schools:
And this from a decade ago – proving just how long they’ve been at it. Exposing the Council on Islamic Education.
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