But the parasites and hangers on are trying to create problems for their own parasitical agenda.
Flagging radical lessons on hate
EXCLUSIVE
JAMES MORROW
Symbols ‘destroyed’
STATE and federal education ministers have slammed divisive third-party learning plans promoted by the NSW Department of Education in the name of anti-racism, saying students should be taught to “defend our key institutions and symbols, rather than trying to destroy them”.
The learning plans were developed by third parties and linked to from the department’s website, though some of the links vanished last week as part of what the department called a website upgrade.
Among other things, the lessons called on students to “deconstruct” symbols of Australia including the flag, Australia Day and the national anthem.
In the flag exercise, developed by a group called “Cool Australia” and using a documentary about footballer Adam Goodes as a jumping off point, students are asked to “examine” the Australian flag and analyse it to see “who is included” and “who is excluded or not visible”.
The worksheet also asks students to summarise criticisms and defences of Australia Day as part of a project of “deconstructing symbols of Australia”, and points to a number of resources, almost all of them in favour of changing the date.
These include a Buzzfeed video titled Aboriginal people respond to Australia Day, links to ABC articles urging that the national day be changed, and an article on the website of The Ethics Centre that states “the date will change” as a matter of fact, adding, “the only reasons … for opposition to changing the date is white privilege, or perhaps even racism”.
An accompanying teachers’ guide suggests that to be marked correct, students should say that it “Erases Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sovereignty and custodianship of land”, and “Celebrates colonisation and erases the colonisers’ violent history towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples”.
While there are no firm figures as to how many schools use the resource, the teachers’ website Education Matters claims “hundreds” of schools use the Goodes documentary in their classrooms.
Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge said the curriculum should “focus on how to defend our key institutions and symbols, rather than trying to destroy them”.
“Our flag represents the greatest country on Earth – one which 100,000 have died defending. It ought to be respected, not torn down,” he said.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell agreed, saying students “do not need incendiary external resources pushed into the classroom from third parties”.
Bella d’Abrera, director of the Foundations of Western Civilisation Program at the Institute of Public Affairs, was similarly scathing.
“The state government has no place actively promoting radical race theory to Australian children, who will grow up believing that Australia is irredeemably racist,” she said.