Why fear talking about history? DEI isn’t the enemy
When you think of the Civil Rights Movement, you probably think about Alabama. The state is associated with the worst of the Jim Crow Era, but also the people who stood against it.
It’s a shame that Alabama’s legislators would rather not talk about these things. Last month, the Alabama Legislature passed SB129, a law that will keep diversity, equity and inclusion offices from college campuses and other public entities. The law, which goes into effect Oct. 1, is one of 11 anti-DEI bills across nine states that have been signed into law since the beginning of 2023.
“I refuse to allow a few bad actors on college campuses – or wherever else for that matter – to go under the acronym of DEI, using taxpayer funds, to push their liberal political movement,” Gov. Kay Ivey said.
Ivey’s assessment of DEI initiatives and “divisive concepts,” as the bill puts it, highlights exactly why diversity in education is important. Pretending otherwise is a disservice to everyone in Alabama. Come November, voters should remember that elections can have a real impact on the laws their states enact.
Legislators choose to ignore the past – and present
Alabama is where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote “Letter from Birmingham Jail.”
It is where Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat.
It is where four Black girls were killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing.
Bloody Sunday, the day when law enforcement officers attacked civil rights marchers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, occurred there.
On top of targeting DEI programs, the new law takes aim at “divisive concepts” being taught in schools. It would hinder the very conversations that should be had about how we can be a more inclusive society moving forward, as well as keeping discussions of race and gender outside of the classroom.
Not only is this language vague, there isn’t any clarity on what the punishment for breaking this law will be. It only adds to the confusion.
Slavery, Reconstruction and the Civil Rights Movement are embedded in Alabama’s history. They are embedded in the South’s history, too. Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas have all passed legislation similar to Alabama’s bill. These are the states where lessons on our past are needed the most. It is where tough conversations need to be had about the long-lasting impacts of the Confederacy.
The perfect place to do that is on college campuses – the very ones these bills are targeting – but it’s impossible to imagine K-12 education anywhere that does not mention King or Parks. The legislators in Alabama need to realize that these conversations are monumental in moving us forward to become a more just society.
Those are the narratives that need to be taught in public schools and universities; they are also the stories and lessons that this new law will inhibit. The targeting of trans individuals is just an added bonus.
Election is the time to change this
Come November, Alabama voters will be able to voice their disdain for legislators who approved this legislation. The governor is in office for another two years, but there are several state elections.
If this new law bothers the people of Alabama, they should vote with that in mind. In particular, young voters who feel that their education will suffer from this new law should mobilize and vote with their conscience.
It doesn’t change the fact that the law was passed in the first place, nor does it change the fact that the only way to move forward as a culture is for laws like this one and the ones filed and passed in other states aim to obscure the past and keep us from having tough conversations in the future.
The anti-DEI law is simply trying to delay progress from happening. Alabamians deserve better.
Follow USA TODAY elections columnist Sara Pequeño on X, formerly Twitter, @sara__pequeno and Facebook facebook.com/PequenoWrites