Ķvlog

Opinion
Families & the Community Letter to the Editor

We Mustn’t Downplay the Dangers of the Right and Far Right

April 16, 2024 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

To the Editor:

The March 4 opinion piece seems reasonable at first glance (“Why Educators Often Have It Wrong About Right-Leaning Parents”). However, at a time when Ķvlog are, in fact, surrounded by those who want their own versions of “political correctness” to hold sway in every level of education, authors Frederick M. Hess and Michael Q. McShane, both of whom work in organizations with rightward slants, downplay the dangers that come from increasingly strident and extreme politics in the right and “far right.”

What exactly are the “shared norms” that Hess and McShane tout? Our communities of the poor, Black, brown, and migrant people are increasingly fragmented and targeted by conservatives who don’t actually value the traditions and customs of such communities. We only have to listen to the increasingly hostile, even fascist-tinged language coming from some on the right. “” is just the most recent example of this kind of hostility. These two authors, rather than finger-wagging at Ķvlog, might be more reliable if they first disassociated themselves from the extreme right wing. That faction is not conservative at all!

Most Ķvlog already opt for understanding and discussion. That approach is seldom reciprocated!

Jon McGill
Educator
Baltimore, Md.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the April 17, 2024 edition of Education Week as We Mustn’t Downplay the Dangers of the Right and Far Right

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar
Smarter Tools, Stronger Outcomes: Empowering CTE Educators With Future-Ready Solutions
Open doors to meaningful, hands-on careers with research-backed insights, ideas, and examples of successful CTE programs.
Content provided by 
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Improve Reading Comprehension: Three Tools for Working Memory Challenges
Discover three working memory workarounds to help your students improve reading comprehension and empower them on their reading journey.
Content provided by 
Recruitment & Retention Webinar EdRecruiter 2026 Survey Results: How School Districts are Finding and Keeping Talent
Discover the latest K-12 hiring trends from EdWeek’s nationwide survey of job seekers and district HR professionals.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Families & the Community Opinion What Student Impacted You Most as a Young Teacher?
Paying attention to students and their families can provide some of the most valuable lessons to teachers.
2 min read
Mike Nelson reads to his students.
Mike Nelson reads to his students.
Mike Nelson
Families & the Community Q&A How These District Leaders Turned Family Engagement on Its Head
Two Leaders to Learn From share insights on what family and community engagement entails.
7 min read
Families & the Community Video ‘A Welcoming Place’: Family Engagement Strategies for Schools (Video)
Schools that enlist parents as partners see positive results. Here's how to do it.
1 min read
Families & the Community Bring Back In-Person Field Trips. Here's Why
School field trips took a hit due to the pandemic and are still recovering. Educators and experts explain why they should come back.
4 min read
Students from Piney Branch Elementary School in Bristow, Va. arrive at Elizabeth Furnace Recreational Area in the George Washington National Forest in Fort Valley, Va. on Tuesday, April 23, 2024 for an outdoor education field trip. During the field trip, students will release brook trout that they’ve grown from eggs in their classroom into Passage Creek and participate in other outdoor educational activities.
Students from Piney Branch Elementary School in Bristow, Va., arrive at Elizabeth Furnace Recreational Area in the George Washington National Forest in Fort Valley, Va., on April 23, 2024, for an outdoor education field trip.
Sam Mallon/Education Week