Students of Color Feel Less Welcome Under New US State Laws

2023/06/14閱讀時間約 17 分鐘

Lawmakers in several U.S. states have passed limits on discussions of race, gender, and sexuality in classrooms. Some students say the measures targeting parts of their identity have made them feel less welcome in American schools.

sexuality (n.) 性取向
Accepting and embracing different sexualities is an important step towards building an inclusive society.

target (v.) 著將某事物作為目標或對象，通常是指對某個特定的事物或群體進行行動、控制或限制。
在句子中，「targeting parts of their identity」表示將針對學生的身份的某些方面進行行動或控制，暗示立法者通過限制課堂中關於種族、性別和性取向的討論，將這些特定主題作為目標，以限制相關討論或教學的範圍。

The first time Tennessee student Harmony Kennedy remembered experiencing racism was in elementary school. On a playground, a girl picked up a leaf and said she wanted to "clean the dirt" from Harmony's skin.

racism (n.) 種族主義；種族歧視
She's experienced a lot of racism growing up, and it's really shaped her perspective.

In 2021, Tennessee started passing legislation that could limit the discussion and teaching of Black history, gender identity, and race in the classroom. To Harmony, the law's possible effects are crushing.

pass legislation 通過立法；制定法律
使用"pass"作為動詞，可以描述政府、議會或立法機構進行法律立案的過程。

legislation [U] 法律；立法
enact legislation 制定法律 / implement legislation 實施法律 / repeal legislation 廢除法律

“When I heard they were removing African American history, banning LGBTQ, I almost started crying,” said Harmony, who is 16. LGBTQ is short for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer.

Conservative leaders in some states have strongly pushed for the new restrictions. Those lawmakers say the restrictions are necessary to fight against liberal ideas in schools. Activists and school boards have pushed for such moves, too. They say teachers need more oversight to make sure learning materials are appropriate.

liberal (adj.) 自由開放的
The school I go to is pretty liberal, and we have open discussions about sensitive topics.

oversight [U] 監督；監察；監管
We need more oversight to keep an eye on how things are being handled.

Books have been removed from some school libraries. Some schools have continued to call transgender students by the name they had before they changed to a different gender.

transgender 跨性別

Some teachers are worried about breaking new rules. As a result, they have avoided discussions related to race, gender, and other divisive issues.

divisive issues 引起分歧、不合的議題或問題
常用於描述具有極大爭議性且令人分裂的話題，常常觸及深層次的價值觀、信仰、政策或觀點差異。
Gun control is one of the most divisive issues in the country, with strong opinions on both sides.

"Neutrality" policy impacts

Leo Burchell goes to a school outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In late 2020, during the pandemic school closures, he started using different pronouns. He started wearing different clothes. He cut his hair shorter, too. The changes, he said, felt right.

pronoun (n.) 代名詞

First, he asked teachers to use they/them pronouns instead of she/her. Then he asked that they use he/him pronouns when talking to him.

"I changed my name to Leo, and for a while it was tough," he said. “I told the people close to me, but I wasn't ready to come out to everybody yet…”

Leo's school is part of the Central Bucks School District. Over the last year, the board has barred employees from using students' chosen names or pronouns without parental permission.

bar someone from something
禁止某人做某事，排除某人參與某活動
They barred him from participating in the competition due to his previous misconduct.

parental permission 家屬允許

The board passed what it called a "neutrality" policy. The policy is meant to prevent social and political advocacy in classrooms. But opponents say the measure targets LGBTQ students.

neutrality [U] 中立
political neutrality 政治中立 / maintain neutrality 保持中立

advocacy [U] 支持、擁護或提倡特定的觀點、理念、政策
I'm really passionate about animal rights, so I've been doing advocacy work to raise awareness about animal cruelty.

One man told the school board in a meeting that transgender people presented a risk of violence in bathrooms. Leo expected another adult in the room to intervene in what felt to him like hate speech. But no one did.

So, at the next board meeting, Leo spoke up. "Attacking students based on who they are or who they love is wrong," he said. Leo has spoken up at other meetings since then.

Leo said he worries about what school will be like for younger transgender students.

“It really just breaks my heart to know that some of my friends, you know, might not want to go to school anymore,” he said.

Students face backlash after speaking up

In Harmony"s freshman-year English class, a boy started playing with his face mask and joked, "I can't breathe, just like George Floyd," Harmony remembered. Floyd, a Black man, was murdered in 2020 by policemen in Minnesota. His death led to nationwide and worldwide protests.

backlash (n.) 對某種觀點、行動或政策的強烈反對或反彈反應
The company faced a major backlash when they announced layoffs just weeks after reporting record profits.

Harmony told her teacher, who said she was sorry it happened but there was not much she could do.

Harmony said the incident was a reminder of why it is important to teach a full version of American history. A law passed by Tennessee in 2021 banned schools from teaching several ideas on race and racism. Because of the law, many teachers now avoid discussions related to race.

After the incident, Harmony decided to join the Forward Club. The group works to support cultural and racial inclusion at her mostly white high school. The club's members come from diverse backgrounds.

inclusion (n.) 融合；包容
The school has a strong culture of inclusion of students with special needs.

At times, students who speak out against new policies have been targeted. In Williamson County, Tennessee, where Harmony goes to school, a political action committee (PAC) accused another high school's Black student union of promoting segregation. The PAC posted the time and place of the student group's meeting on social media. Elsewhere, transgender students who have spoken up about bullying have faced insults on social media.

segregation [U] 隔離並差別對待
描述人們根據種族、性別、宗教或其他特定特徵進行分離或隔離的行為或政策。它通常指的是將不同群體分開，限制其共享資源、權益和機會的做法。
racial segregation / gender segregation / school segregation

Harmony said she has had to go outside of school to learn about Black culture and history. Her experience in high school has led her to want to attend a historically Black college.

Harmony said she wants to be able to go to school like any other teenager and focus on learning. But she said she will continue to speak out for what she believes in.

“My sister is going to be an incoming freshman this year," she said, “and I want her to have a safe learning environment where she doesn't have to really deal with all the ignorance and things.”