Here at The Root, we have a question. What era are we in? The past, the future? Every day the world seems scarier, no ... it’s our leaders who are scary. Case in point: to force the public schools of such a historically significant place like Tulsa, Ok. to abandon discussions of race and racism isn’t surprising but disappointing. But that wasn’t enough for the leader of this state.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt ordered a special audit of Tulsa Public Schools for the potential mishandling of public funds but to also make sure they weren’t teaching “prohibited concepts” such as critical race theory, per KTUL News.
The governor took to Twitter to officially his audit request which apparently came at the request of two Tulsa school board members. He said in his video that he will “get to the bottom” of the irregularities that have been reported which was the loss of about $20,000 from the district. However, he’s also using it as an opportunity to check up on how well the schools followed anti-CRT bill he passed in May of 2021.
More on the bill from AP News:
“Now more than ever, we need policies that bring us together, not rip us apart,” Stitt said in a video statement on Twitter. “As governor, I firmly believe that not one cent of taxpayer money should be used to define and divide young Oklahomans about their race or sex. That is what this bill upholds for public education.”
The House author of the bill, Moore Republican Rep. Kevin West, said he’s heard reports of students being taught that because they’re a certain race or sex, they’re inherently superior to others or should feel guilty for something that happened in the past.
“Today I am calling for a special audit of Tulsa Public Schools and the potential mishandling of public funds. I’m also concerned TPS may have violated state law by teaching critical race theory,” Stitt tweeted.
Basically, students will be able to learn about the Tulsa Race Massacre but not the reason why Black Wall Street was stormed by a raid of angry white people - that reason being racism. Oklahoma is one of the states to join Florida and Tennessee in solidifying their anti-CRT ban, per the World Population Review.