http://http://vimeo.com/17433951

Maria Federico Brummer and Sally Rusk explained the impacts and implications of House Bill 2281.

The University of Wisconsin’s Multicultural Student Center hosted two Arizona ethnic studies educators Thursday who spoke about a proposal in their state they believe is intended to ban ethnic studies courses.

Maria Federico Brummer and Sally Rusk, teachers within the Mexican-American Studies and Social Justice Education programs in the Tucson Unified School District in Arizona, spoke on behalf of their program in an effort to raise awareness about their resistance to Arizona House Bill 2281, and to discuss the impact ethnic studies programs have on students across the nation.

The bill prohibits schools in Arizona from including in their curriculums any courses promoting the overthrow of the U.S. government, promoting resentment against a class of people or those designed primarily for the students of a particular ethnic group.

Brummer and Rusk are from the only school district in the nation that teaches Chicano and ethnic studies from Kindergarten through grade 12. Brummer said he believes former Arizona State Superintendent Tom Horne has pushed this bill to ban their specific educational program.

While it does not directly ban our program specifically, they wrote it with us in mind, and in a way that would result in our program being illegal,” Brummer said.

This bill comes on the heels of SB1070, which started the racial hostility in Arizona. 

In the past year, Arizona has come under fire from various immigrant rights groups for the measure that allows police to detain individuals they suspect may be in the country illegally. Many believe this promotes racial profiling, as police are generally more likely to stop people with darker skin.

According to Brummer and Rusk’s statistics from Arizona High school exit exams, students in their program have consistently received higher test scores in every subject compared to the next highest demographic group in the state.

Brummer also said 97 percent of their students graduate high school, compared to a 44 percent graduation rate nationally among Latin-American high school students.

“But they don’t care about high test scores, which should be [the state school board’s] aim. They have turned the argument around and are saying what we’re teaching is un-American and should be banned,” Rusk said.

The ethnic studies educators from the TUSD filed a lawsuit against Horne and the Arizona School Board in an Arizona state court, but if they fail to appeal, the department has 60 days to prove they are not violating the new law, Brummer said.

The educators also discussed other recent controversial pieces of legislation in the state of Arizona, and said they hope the state backs down but are looking for any help they can get in fighting the legislation.

Brummer said it’s important to teach ethnic studies because of its impact on students’ perceptions of the world, and how it teaches them to think critically about history.

“When you teach people to question the world around them, it can be a very scary thing for others,” Rusk said.

After the presentation, audience members asked questions about how Rusk and Brummer made their ethnic studies program so successful, and discussed recent legislation in Wisconsin.

UW Senior Khai Chang attended because he had heard of the event from friends around campus, and believes ethnic studies need to be kept in schools.

“They give you a different perspective on diverse races and people, and show how all sorts of people contribute to our country and American ideals,” Chang said.