This Fourth of July, reject wokeism and embrace patriotism

Consider what students have been learning in too many classrooms for years. The New York Times’s 1619 Project, which seeks to “reframe” America’s founding beginning not with the Pilgrims in 1620, or the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, but with the arrival of the first slave ships in North America, has been used in 4,500 K-12 classrooms all over the country. In this woke retelling of history, racism is woven into the fabric of America, and its institutions exist to keep it alive. Its authors claim America is irredeemably evil and must be razed and rebuilt.

It gets worse. Last year in Philadelphia, a fifth-grade social studies teacher forced students to honor “black communism” and communist activists during Black History Month. Students were required to participate in a mock rally to “free” Angela Davis, a communist activist who was jailed in the 1970s on charges of conspiracy, murder, and kidnapping. In the school auditorium, children shouted “Free Angela!” from the stage.

In California, third-graders were required to “deconstruct” their racial and sexual identities. They were then forced to place themselves on an oppression matrix according to their “power and privilege.”

And most recently, a public elementary school in Washington, D.C., taught a lesson on “anti-racism” that asked students as young as 4 years old to identify racist family members. Children were taught that “white privilege is something you were born with” and that “it’s not your fault for having white privilege, but it is your fault if you choose to ignore it.”

With propaganda like this, it’s no wonder 64% of young people say they don’t feel proud to be Americans. It’s why we’ve seen young activists burn the flag, tear down statues of our Founding Fathers, and riot in the streets chanting, “Burn it down.”

But these young people have been lied to. America is a uniquely good nation. No other country in history has been founded on the bold assertion that all men are created equal with rights that come from God, not government. And no other nation has worked so hard and sacrificed so much to fulfill the founders’ vision of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for generations to come. Our youth deserve to know the truth about our country, the good as well as the bad, and feel proud to be Americans.

That’s why the battle unfolding in classrooms and school board meetings across the country is so important. The past two years have exposed just how thoroughly critical race theory (the Marxist-rooted ideology that divides America by skin color and frames some as oppressors and others as oppressed based solely on their race) has infected the American education system, and parents have had enough. They’re speaking out at school board meetings, recalling far-Left board members, and even running for office themselves. Republican legislators in red states are passing bills to ban CRT in public school curricula while Republican governors, such as Bill Lee of Tennessee, are working with schools to teach “unapologetic American exceptionalism.” And in Congress, Republicans are introducing legislation to slash funding for schools that promote racially divisive content. The GOP has become the party of parents and patriotism.

President Abraham Lincoln predicted that “if destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher.” Today, his warning hits close to home. The biggest threat to our freedoms comes from within. But it’s not too late. Rediscovering America’s exceptional qualities begins with rejecting the Left’s dark narrative and reacquainting ourselves with our nation’s true history, both in the classroom and at home.

This Independence Day, take pride in marching in the local parade, launching fireworks, and waving Old Glory. America is worth celebrating. Even more importantly, it’s worth fighting for.

Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel became the second woman ever elected as the leader of the Republican National Committee in 2017.