Editor, Ceres Courier,

Emphasizing race to divide people, also known as DEI initiatives, is damaging our students and their future by destroying a sense of shared community and creating prejudices that will last long after graduation, or after school is over for those who don’t meet graduation requirements.

I have taught for 27 years. When I began teaching, some students in elementary school would tease students from Oaxaca. They mocked them for their darker skin color by calling them “negra” or made fun of them for not understanding English or Spanish.

This was absolutely wrong and bullying and the staff worked diligently to help students develop an understanding of the value of all people and the fact that every individual can learn and be successful.

Over time, the Mixteco culture came to be appreciated and now is a vibrant part of our community. People are recognized and celebrated for being tri-lingual if they speak English, Spanish, and Mixteco. That is progress.

Now I teach at a junior high. Students are indoctrinated to believe White people are oppressors and “people of color” are victims who haven’t succeeded and cannot succeed due to systemic racism.

Mexican students who can’t speak Spanish are ridiculed. One of my students was vehemently insisting, “I’m not white, I’m not white” to one of his classmates. I, a white woman in her 50s, asked, “Is there something wrong with being white?” He had no answer.

This is not the way. Promoting division by race, culture or ethnicity can only divide communities, not unite them. Blaming race for failures in the public education system only distracts from reality. We need to ask why only 26% of our students are proficient in English and 16% in math. (EdSource.org)

One district I know of has a 92% graduation rate. Only 49% of the students are proficient in English and 22% in math. Why?

We need to stop looking for excuses and teach so that students have the skills they need to succeed in the real world.

Kerry Millhorn

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