Equity Archives - The Virginia Star

Commentary: The Pandemic Treaty That Won’t Prevent a Pandemic

February 21, 2024 RealClearWire

If a “pandemic treaty” fails to account for the dismal international response to COVID-19 and isn’t focused on preventing future pandemics, is it really a “pandemic treaty”? Yet that’s the current state of the draft “pandemic treaty” being negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The failures of the international health system’s response to COVID are well-established. The People’s Republic of China failed to inform the international community of the outbreak in a timely manner as required by the International Health Regulations – a provision established because of Beijing’s cover-up of the 2002 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). China mischaracterized COVID-19 saying that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission—a deadly lie that the WHO parroted unquestioningly.

US Navy’s STEM ‘Equity’ Program Prioritized Candidates, Internships Based on Race, Docs Show

February 17, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

The U.S. Navy approved more than $750,000 for a project that, while purporting to “equitably” increase the number of students interested in serving in the Navy’s STEM fields, prioritized recruiting underrepresented minority students, documents obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation show.

The University of Missouri–Kansas City (UMKC) proposed a way to encourage students to pursue degrees in fields of science, technology, economics and math (STEM) amid pressures for the U.S. military to out-compete adversaries in technological development, according to the since-approved application obtained by the Functional Government Initiative through a records request and provided to the DCNF. Although the project was framed as providing an opportunity for all students to break into the STEM fields based on the students’ qualifications, the Navy granted a budget extension to include 75 scholarships for underrepresented minority students and gave them first selection for the few on-campus paid research internships created through the program.

Commentary: Inflated Grades, Increasing Graduation Rates, and Deflated Test Scores

January 21, 2024 Virginia Star Staff

Grade inflation is rampant and has been so for many years. Back in 2011, an in-depth study by three Ivy League economists looked at how the quality of individual teachers affects their students over the long term. The paper, by Raj Chetty and John N. Friedman of Harvard and Jonah E. Rockoff of Columbia, tracked 2.5 million students over 20 years and, using a value-added approach, found that teachers who help students raise their standardized test scores have a lasting positive effect on those students’ lives beyond academics, including lower teenage pregnancy rates, greater college matriculation, and higher adult earnings. The authors of the study define “value added” as the average test-score gain for a teacher’s students “…adjusted for differences across classrooms in student characteristics such as prior scores.”

But to those who believe in equity über alles, quality is an afterthought, and many states are ditching any objective criteria for entry into the teaching field. In California, teachers traditionally have had to pass the ridiculously easy California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST) to gain entry into the profession, but the test is now under fire.

Biden Mandates A.I. Advance ‘Equity and Civil Rights’

November 5, 2023 The Center Square

President Joe Biden has signed an executive order requiring that Artificial Intelligence technology advance “equity and civil rights.”

Biden signed the order this week, putting more regulatory guidance in place for A.I., a rapidly developing technology that some experts warn could be used for harm for everyday Americans.

Commentary: Diversity Means Divide and Conquer

October 29, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

By now, everyone should have noticed how ubiquitous the word “diversity” is, often alongside partner terms such as “equity“ and “inclusion,“ making the acronym “DEI.”

Though “diversity” sounds benign and technically only means varied, different or differentiated, its modern usage appears to mean more. How much more may be the difference between something benign and something malignant.

Oregon Suspends Basic Skills Graduation Requirement in the Name of Equity

October 25, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

In the state of Oregon, high school students will no longer need to display basic comprehension of reading, math, or writing in order to graduate, with state officials claiming that such a change is necessary to guarantee higher graduation rates for minority students.

As reported by Fox News, the pause on such basic graduation requirements had first been implemented during the Chinese Coronavirus pandemic. But last week, the Oregon State Board of Education voted unanimously to extend the requirement suspension at least until the end of the 2027-2028 school year.

Major Environmental Group Is at War with Itself over Race, ‘Equity’

September 10, 2023September 10, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

The Sierra Club has experienced major infighting recently after major layoffs and changes left minority staffers feeling snubbed, The Washington Post reported.

Ben Jealous, the executive director of the Sierra Club since November 2022, let go more than two dozen workers, many of whom were people of color, in April and May of 2023 as part of a “reconstruction” effort and relabeled the nonprofit’s “People, Culture, and Equity Department” to just be the “People Department,” according to the Post. Employees at the Sierra Club protested these changes and wrote a letter on Thursday through the Progressive Workers Union, the union for the nonprofit, alleging that the organization’s moves were contrary to its stated goal of diversity.

Physicians Criticize CDC ‘Guidance’ on Biological Men ‘Chestfeeding’ Babies

July 13, 2023July 12, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Doctors are reacting with shock and horror at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) “guidance” on how biological men who identify as women can “chestfeed” their babies.

Internationally-known physician Peter McCullough, M.D., wrote at his Substack column Courageous Discourse Tuesday that CDC has become a “laughing stock” over its “chestfeeding” guidance, “plunging to new lows” with its “ridiculous” statement.

Constitutional Law Center Urges over 150 Medical Schools to End Race-Based Admissions Following Supreme Court Decision

July 8, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

A nonprofit law center whose mission is to defend the constitutional rights of Americans has sent a letter to more than 150 medical schools throughout the country, calling upon them to end their race-based admissions policies in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that struck down affirmative action.

Liberty Justice Center, which won a major victory for First Amendment rights in June 2018 after the Supreme Court ruled in Janus v. AFSCME that non-union government workers cannot be required to pay union fees as a condition of working in public service, has now announced efforts to inform the schools of their “legal obligation to end race-based admissions policies” in response to the Court’s recent ruling in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Constitutional Experts Welcome Supreme Court’s Takedown of Affirmative Action but Warn of Universities’ Attempts at ‘Workarounds’

July 3, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Many of those who are applauding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Thursday that struck down affirmative action are also warning that universities that have been steeped for decades in “equity” and “diversity” ideology are not likely to go quietly.

Google Backs Down from Pride’ Drag Show After Employees Claim Discrimination Against Christians

June 28, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Tech giant Google has reportedly distanced itself from a ‘pride month’ drag performance it had planned to sponsor in San Francisco after several hundred employees signed a petition expressing opposition to the event, arguing it discriminates against the Christian faith.

According to a report Tuesday at CNBC, a drag queen known as “Peaches Christ” was scheduled to perform at Beaux, an LGBTQ bar in San Francisco, at a “pride” event sponsored by Google.

Commentary: Equity and the Race to the Bottom

April 30, 2023 RealClearWire

Over the last few years, the rallying cry of “woke” activists has become “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” (often abbreviated to DEI). There is little reason to object to such principles on the surface. After all, America was founded on the principle that all people are created equal. Unfortunately, the meaning of words can change over time.

Rather than the Founders’ vision of equal opportunity for all, the use of the word “equity” today denotes equal outcomes for all. The implementation of this “equity agenda,” however well-intentioned, will lead to terrible consequences.

Schools Axe Homework, Deadlines in the Name of Equity: Report

April 27, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

Several schools throughout the country are moving to axe homework and deadlines in an effort to increase equity, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Under the philosophy of “equitable grading,” students are given more chances to show they have mastered a subject, a practice that downplays the importance of homework and eschews deadlines in an attempt to give kids who struggle with hardships at home more opportunities to learn the material, according to the WSJ. Schools in California, Nevada and Connecticut are moving to implement “equitable grading,” though opponents of the system, many teachers and students say it disincentives students and leads to a lack of accountability.

Report: CVS ‘Gender Transition Guidelines’ Urge All Employees to Become Allies of Transgender Workers

April 18, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

CVS Health’s “gender transition guidelines” for employees shows the drugstore chain catering to transgender employees by allowing them to use whichever sex’s restroom they prefer, insisting all others use their preferred pronouns, and providing medical leave for their gender transition, a Fox Business report says.

Teachers, Activists Push School Districts to Drop Calculus in the Name of Equity

March 14, 2023 Admin

Teachers and activists are pushing for high schools to drop their calculus courses to increase equity as many minority and low-income students don’t have access to the class, according to The 74, a nonprofit news organization covering education.

In the 2017-2018 school year, 76% of schools with “low student of color enrollment” offered calculus while 52% of schools with a high proportion of students of color offered the advanced math course, according to a Learning Policy Institute report. The course, teachers and activists argued, is disproportionately offered to students not of an underrepresented group, giving other students an advantage in the college admissions process, according to The 74.

Commentary: The Dark Origins and History of International Women’s Day

March 8, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

March 8 is International Women’s Day, and over the past few years, this means our news and social media feeds are flooded with stories and advertisements centering on women (and sometimes men identifying as women). Some of these stories do shine a light on how women have contributed to the world we live in, but most seem to come from left-wing outlets propagating their ideas of women, gender politics, and equity.

Civil Rights Commissioner Warns House Judiciary Committee of Biden’s ‘Trojan Horse’ Radical Equity Executive Order

March 6, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

A member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has written to Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan (R), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, warning that Joe Biden’s sweeping executive order embedding radical woke equity ideology in all agencies of the executive branch is a “Trojan Horse” that represents “a major step toward socialism.”

Doctors Condemn Radical Woke Medical School Ideology: ‘Sacrifices the Needs of Patients, Even Their Lives’

February 28, 2023February 27, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

More doctors are publicly condemning the Marxist racial and gender ideological agenda into which medical school students are being trained, asserting patents’ health, and even their lives, are being sacrificed for a totalitarian political worldview.

A report published last week, for example, by Do No Harm, an organization of physicians, healthcare professionals, medical students, patients, and policymakers, revealed the pervasive infiltration of woke diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) ideologies in Tennessee medical school curricula and programs.

Legal Insurrection’s ‘Equal Protection Project’ Launches to Defend Americans Against Biden’s ‘Equity Discrimination’

February 25, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

President Joe Biden issued a sweeping executive order last week that will embed woke critical race and gender ideologies into every agency of the federal government, an agenda Legal Insurrection’s Professor William Jacobson asserts amounts to “outright discrimination on the basis of race.”

Jacobson announced the launch of the Equal Protection Project Thursday night on Fox News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight.

Biden Grants Sweeping ‘Racial Equity’ Power to Susan Rice in Executive Order Converting Entire Federal Government into ‘Woke DEI Cult’

February 21, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Joe Biden issued an executive order Thursday that grants Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice power to transform all agencies of the executive branch into a radical “woke DEI cult,” warns America First Legal (AFL). With scant establishment media coverage, Biden issued his executive order that intends to completely make over all domestic federal agencies to an entirely Marxist worldview – without congressional approval.

Fairfax County’s Thomas Jefferson High School Found Not Denoting Honors Class Designation on Student Transcripts

January 26, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Administrators at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology (TJ) in Fairfax County, Virginia, failed to make Honors classes notations on the official school transcripts of their students, Parents Defending Education (PDE) has discovered.

Poll: Americans Say Critical Race Theory Dividing Young People

January 19, 2023January 18, 2023 M.D. Kittle

More than two-thirds of American voters believe the tenets and teachings of Critical Race Theory are only serving to further divide young people, according to a recent national poll. Conducted for Summit Ministries by nationally renowned polling firm McLaughlin & Associates, the poll shows 69 percent of respondents with an opinion on the issue believe CRT curriculum further divides ethnic groups and races among American youth. Less than one-third (31%) say CRT promotes racial healing and reconciliation among America’s kids.

Youngkin Rips Fairfax County Schools for Failing to Notify Students of National Merit Recognition: ‘Maniacal Focus on Equal Outcomes for All Students at All Costs’

January 17, 2023January 16, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) said the failure of high schools in Fairfax County to notify students of their National Merit Scholarship program recognition is due to the district’s “maniacal focus on equal outcomes for all students at all costs.”

In an interview Friday with ABC 7News, Youngkin commented on the acknowledgement by seven high schools in Fairfax County that they did not inform students of their recognition in time for their college scholarship and admission deadlines.

Famous College Ranker Overhauls System After Law Schools Pull Out Due to Equity Concerns

January 4, 2023January 3, 2023 Virginia Star Staff

U.S. News & World Report is modifying its law school ranking system after several top schools pulled out of the rankings altogether, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The ranker will give dean, faculty, lawyer and judge “reputational surveys” less weight and will no longer consider per-student expenditures which critics have said favor the wealthiest schools during the ranking process, according to the WSJ. The announcement comes after top law schools Yale, Harvard, Georgetown, Columbia, the University of California, Berkeley and Stanford pulled out of the rankings, saying the report hurts schools that admit students with lower test scores because they could not afford tutoring and academic services.

Virginia High School Withheld Academic Awards for Equity Reasons, Parents Claim

December 30, 2022December 29, 2022 Just the News

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County, Virginia, reportedly delayed notifying its students of their receipt of certain academic achievement awards until after the deadlines for early selection at some colleges and universities, which many parents have alleged was done as part of the school district’s alleged efforts to create “equal outcomes for every student, without exception.”

‘Drag Queen Story Hour’ Public Libraries Agree to Allow Actor Kirk Cameron to Hold Children’s Faith-Based Story Hour Only After He Threatens Lawsuit

December 21, 2022December 20, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

Actor and author Kirk Cameron announced he scored two victories recently when two public libraries that had hosted a “drag queen story hour” for children finally agreed to allow him to hold a children’s faith-based story hour.

The libraries denied him their facilities at first, but then reconsidered once he threatened court action.

Kamala Harris Says Disaster Relief Should Be ‘Based on Equity’

October 3, 2022October 2, 2022 Admin

Vice President Kamala Harris said Friday that aid distributed in the wake of natural disasters like Hurricane Ian should be “based on equity.”

“It is our lowest-income communities and communities of color that are most impacted by these extreme conditions and impacted by issues not of their own making—” Harris said before being interrupted by Priyanka Chopra Jonas at a Democratic National Committee Women’s Leadership Forum.

New Department of Defense Equity Chief Has History of Anti-White Statements

September 17, 2022September 16, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

A new diversity hire at the Biden Administration’s Department of Defense (DOD) has a long and documented history of racist statements against White people on her social media.

As reported by the New York Post, Kelisa Wing is an Army veteran and the new chief of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at the DOD’s Education Activity. Her Twitter account in particular contains numerous anti-White statements, including her declaration in June of 2020 that she was “exhausted with these white folx in these [professional development] sessions.”

Commentary: ‘Equity’ Pursuits Don’t Provide Fairness in Our Healthcare System

September 6, 2022September 5, 2022 RealClearWire

Millions of dollars are being spent on pursuing ‘equity’ in our healthcare system while insisting that we do not have “equity” because our entire medical enterprise is systemically racist. To get there, some even suggest that we should prioritize care delivery by skin color.

White House Equity Initiative Celebrates ‘B.L.A.C.K. to School’ Event to Recruit and Retain Black K-12 Teachers

August 20, 2022August 19, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans is featuring a “roundtable” event that seeks to promote K-12 public school systems that recruit and retain black teachers.

The invitation for the event, scheduled for Tuesday, August 23, says “B.L.A.C.K. to School” seeks to support “Black school, district, and state educational leaders and creating K12 systems that effectively recruit and retain Black teachers.”

Commentary: The Rainbow Fish Generation

May 29, 2022May 28, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

Perhaps the most risible, widely acclaimed children’s book in the history of children’s books is The Rainbow Fish. This book, featuring a beautiful fish with shiny scales on the cover, made it into home libraries of children everywhere. It tells the story of a fish who is special because his scales are shiny and brightly colored. Every other boring, no-talent, plainly scaled fish envies the lovely and gifted Rainbow Fish and harasses him. The solution? The Rainbow Fish gives away all that made him special in order to earn their friendship and now these little commie crappies each have one scale but remain ugly, envious redistributionists.

The result? Equity. Everyone felt better because no one was great. A bunch of mediocre fishes swim around with pink hair or a nose ring and a big chip on their no-talent shoulders.

Youngkin and Virginia Department of Education Release Report on Virginia’s Achievement Gaps

May 20, 2022May 19, 2022 Eric Burk

RICHMOND, Virginia – Governor Glenn Youngkin’s education administration released a report on the heading of Virginia’s education. The release of the report is a major moment for Youngkin, who came to power riding a wave of parental frustration with education.

“Today is a moment in time for all of us to recognize we must change direction,” Youngkin said in the press conference. “We are not serving all of Virginia’s children and we must. We want to be the best in education. We should be the best in education. And the data that was compiled ans shared with you today suggests that we have a lot of work to do to be the best.”

School District in Washington State Holding Racially Segregated Superintendent Search Meetings for Parents

February 11, 2022February 10, 2022 Susan Berry, PhD

A Washington school district plans to hold racially segregated meetings for parents and guardians who wish to participate in the search for a new superintendent.

As afternoon radio host Jason Rantz reported at MYNorthwest Wednesday, the Issaquah School District’s (ISD) weekly bulletin for February 7 listed its “upcoming events,” including separate meetings for “Parents/Guardians of Color.”

Politically Incorrect Professor Faces Firing After Lawmakers Show Up on Law School’s Doorstep

January 26, 2022January 25, 2022 Virginia Star Staff

University of Pennsylvania professor Amy Wax

University of Toronto psychologist Jordan Peterson, who famously opposed Canadian gender pronoun mandates, disclosed Wednesday that he had resigned as a tenured professor years earlier than planned.

In a lengthy and impassioned account of his decision for the National Post, the bestselling author argued that the “radical leftist Trinity” of diversity, inclusion and equity (DIE) is reducing his students to their race and ignoring their merit. He faulted colleagues for “going along with the DIE activists.”

Meanwhile, an Ivy League law professor who is even more politically incorrect than Peterson may not have a choice in whether she keeps her job of two decades.

Commentary: The Only Culture War That Truly Matters

January 16, 2022 Admin

The term “culture war” has been a staple of American politics and public debates for decades, the latest iterations framed by the likes of abortion, marriage equality, and climate change. However, such issues don’t motivate voters as much as people on the extremes tend to believe.

You saw it in Virginia’s recent election, with exit polls showing that 34% of voters say the economy/jobs is the most important issue facing the state. Education is the second-most important issue, and with it the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic that closed schools — contrary to the wishes of many parents. Critical race theory was important insofar as it related to education and the say that parents should have regarding what’s taught in local schools.

$75 Million Equity Strategy Includes 40 New Faculty Hires to ‘Diversify’ Campus

December 21, 2021December 20, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Purdue University announced recently that it intends to hire 40 new faculty to “diversify the racial makeup” of its campus.

The move is part of the Indiana school’s $75 million Equity Task Force strategy, a five-year project.

Purdue’s website lists 14 open positions and explains that the first cluster hire will focus on the fields of “Public Health, Health Policy, and Health Equity.”

Andy Sayles, the vice president of Purdue University’s Turning Point USA chapter, told Campus Reform that the amount of money the school is spending on the initiative is “alarming.”

Consultants Are Raking in Millions Promoting Critical Race Theory in Schools, According to Conservative Advocacy Group

October 28, 2021October 27, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Diversity, equity and inclusion consultants are getting paid millions of dollars by public schools “to push divisive ideologies” to transform American schools “from institutions of education to places of woke indoctrination,” according to a conservative education advocacy group.

Parents Defending Education (PDE) spent four months compiling data for its “Consultant Report Card” released Thursday, which investigates 543 public school districts and agencies across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Department of Labor to Award $10 Million to Advance ‘Gender Proportionality’ in Mexico

August 30, 2021August 29, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

This week’s Golden Horseshoe is awarded to the Department of Labor for a $10 million grant to promote “gender equity” in the workplace in Mexico.

In its grant notice, the DOL’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) announces that the goal of the project is to “improve gender equity in the Mexican workplace by supporting actions to increase the number of women in union leadership, strengthen protections, address harassment at work and augment wages for women.”

Oregon Progressives Lower Academic Expectations for Minority Students in Name of ‘Equity’

August 16, 2021August 15, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Oregon’s high school graduation rate is on the rise. But maybe not for the right reasons.

The onset of the coronavirus pandemic prompted state guidelines that essentially mandated a no-fail policy for high school seniors whose course work became remote during the latter half of the 2020 school year. Now, state graduation rates will likely remain artificially inflated, thanks to a new law that will allow Oregon students to get their diplomas without proving proficiency in core academic skills.

Commentary: Incommensurability in 2021 American Politics

July 21, 2021July 20, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

The ubiquitous term “paradigm” and the concept of “paradigm shifts,” were popularized by the historian and philosopher of science Thomas Kuhn. He used them to characterize, roughly, a scientific theory’s fundamental elements and the changes in fundamental elements that occur with scientific revolutions and changes in theory.

Commentary: Research Used to Justify California’s ‘Equity’ Math Doesn’t Add Up

July 16, 2021July 15, 2021 RealClearWire

$Black Pen on Equations$

The push to create “equity” and more “social justice” in public schools in America’s largest state rests on this basic premise: “We reject ideas of natural gifts and talents,” declares the current draft of the California Math Framework, which also states that it rejects “the cult of genius.”

Informed by that fundamental idea, the 800-page Framework calls for the elimination of accelerated classes and gifted programs for high-achieving students until at least the 11th grade.

Arizona State University Debuts New Degree in Social Justice Activism

July 6, 2021July 5, 2021 Corinne Murdock

Arizona State University (ASU) debuted a new undergraduate degree geared toward social justice activism, called community development. The course description describes education on the basics of activism, citing concepts like diversity, inclusivity, sustainability, equity, and social and environmental justice. If students enjoy studying community development, they may also earn a graduate degree in it.

“The BA program in community development equips students with tools to collaborate with, empower and educate diverse community constituents by drawing on grassroots and inclusive frameworks such as sustainable development, social and environmental justice, participatory democracy, social and economic equity and social accounting,” reads the course description.

Critical Race Theory Presented Before Board of America’s Oldest Military Academy

June 23, 2021June 22, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

In a recent livestream, a Virginia state official gave a presentation on why the far-left and anti-White teachings of Critical Race Theory should be encouraged at the oldest military academy in the United States, the Daily Caller reports.

Janice Underwood, who holds the title of Virginia’s “Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer,” spoke before a virtual gathering of the Board of Visitors at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI). In the lecture, Underwood promoted the racist writings of Robin DiAngelo, the author of the book “White Fragility.” She explicitly called for such “uncomfortable” ideas to be promoted at VMI, and said that such race-based thinking should be incorporated into “every single course” at the academy.

“Discomfort is to be expected,” Underwood continued, but encouraged the faculty to “lean into that discomfort. Walk towards the discomfort, not away.” She added that students at the academy must “engage in self-reflection and engage their own racial engagement and biases.”

Joint Special Operations Command Personnel Requested to Attend Conference on ‘Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’

May 30, 2021May 29, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Both civilian and military personnel with the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) are being asked by the Pentagon to attend virtual conferences focusing on “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” in order to boost their “professional development,” according to a Breitbart exclusive.

The emails making the requests were sent in April and May by JSOC’s Civilian Training Office, claiming that the conferences that would normally cost “$500 a session per person” are now available “at no cost” to personnel, and would both be virtual and broadcast at JSOC’s compound in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

There were three different conferences promoted by the email: “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” “Change & Transformation,” and “Emotional Well-Being.” The diversity conference would include four different panels: “Inclusive leadership for building equitable organizations,” “psychological safety and belonging,” “restorative justice, community trauma, and the partisan divide,” and “racism, white supremacy, and anti-racism.”

Virginia Launches Pandemic-Style Equity Dashboards

May 19, 2021May 18, 2021 Eric Burk

Virginia’s Health Equity Leadership created two new dashboards displaying equity data in a style similar to pandemic metric dashboards. The dashboards display data on current conditions in Virginia and on mitigation efforts.

Minnesota Theater Cancels Cinderella Production Because Cast Was ‘Too White’

March 29, 2021March 28, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

A suburban Minneapolis theater company has cancelled a production of “Cinderella” because its cast was “too white.”

Chanhassen Dinner Theatres was scheduled to stage Roger & Hammerstein’s classic play later this year before its artistic director stepped in to criticise its lack of racial diversity, twincities.com reported.

“It was 98 percent white,” Michael Brindisi, the theater’s artistic director, told the Twin Cities Pioneer Press on Wednesday after looking at the actors who had been cast. “That doesn’t work with what we’re saying we’re going to do.”

Parent Whistleblower Shares Loudoun County Public School Persists in Virtual Political Indoctrination

December 10, 2020December 9, 2020 Corinne Murdock

A Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) parent discovered that nearly half of their child’s English grade relied on learning social justice material. Students were expected to review news coverage on the beginnings of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) following the 2012 death of Trayvon Martin, read and write about the Michael Brown-inspired, police violence-centered novel “All American Boys.”

The parent, Matt D., submitted a letter to the LCPS teacher requesting any alternative assignments for their child, and criticizing the material offered to students.

Loudoun County Schools Superintendent Announced Sudden Departure for Texas Superintendent Position, Parents in New District React

November 16, 2020November 15, 2020 Corinne Murdock

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) Superintendent Eric Williams announced his departure last week without warning. The Clear Creek Independent School District (CCISD) in Houston, Texas selected Williams as their sole finalist for superintendent in a nationwide search.

LCPS parents and concerned CCISD parents flooded the comments of the official CCISD Facebook page announcement on Williams’ new position. LCPS parents warned CCISD parents that Williams would impose the same social justice initiatives that he’d done while overseeing LCPS, such as through the Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee (MSAAC).

Loudoun County Schools Clarifies to Parents That White Children Can Participate, But Not Speak as Equity Ambassadors

November 12, 2020November 11, 2020 Corinne Murdock

A Loudoun County Public Schools Equity Advisor told parents that White students may only become equity ambassadors to “amplify the voice of Students of Color.” When the parent asked for in a followup email if their child could discuss the personal accounts of White students, the advisor said no.

“This LCPS endeavor is specific to amplifying the voice of Students of Color by engaging in discussions about their experiences regarding issues of racism, injustice, and inequity. Though all students (white or otherwise) are more than welcome to potentially serve as ambassadors, their focus would be to raise the voice of their classmates of color during these meetings.”