*A teacher in South Carolina has found herself in trouble for teaching a book written by Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Citing The Washington Post (WaPo), Vibe reports Coates’ book, “Between the World and Me” was taught by English teacher Mary Wood, who was reported by two of her students.
Wood sought to use the book to teach her all-white class about what it means to be Black in America using Coates’ literature. The students later informed the school board that Wood was attempting to discuss race in the classroom.
In emails to the school board, the students expressed their thoughts on “Between the World and Me” and Wood’s teaching of the literature, writing that Coates’ book “made them ashamed to be white.”
“[Her lesson] violated a South Carolina proviso that forbids teachers from making students’ feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress’ on account of their race,” the Post reports.
The bill in question is S246, which South Carolina passed in early 2023. According to SCstatehouse.gov, S246 required teachers to “implement policies respecting the intellectual freedom and dignity of each student, teacher, and staff member.”
WaPo goes on to note how similar the bill is to Florida’s infamous law in that it demands that “instruction and teaching materials on the topics enumerated in this section must be consistent with six principles related to race and gender.”
The six principles include the following:
1-“No race is inherently superior to another race;
2-“No person is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously, solely by virtue of the individual’s race or gender;
3-“No person’s moral character is inherently determined by his race or gender;
4-“A person, by virtue of his race or gender, does not bear personal responsibility for actions committed in the past by other members of the same race or gender;
5-“A person should not be instructed that he must feel guilt, anguish, or other forms of psychological distress for actions, in which he played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race or gender;
6-“An individual should not be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment due solely to his race or gender.”
In addition to feeling ashamed by Woods’ teaching and pointing out the violation of the bills, the reporting students mentioned that reading “Between the World and Me” felt like “reading hate propaganda towards white people.”
“I understand in AP Lang we are learning to develop an argument and have evidence to support it, yet this topic is too heavy to discuss,” another student wrote to the board. “I actually felt ashamed to be Caucasian.”
Complaints from the students triggered a reaction from the school administrators who demanded Wood “stop teaching the lesson” via a formal letter of reprimand that was sent to the educator. In addition, administrators placed a copy of the letter in Wood’s file.
“It instructed her to keep teaching ‘without discussing this issue with your students,’” the Post added.
In addition to students and administrators, Wood received backlash from other teachers who called for her to be fired for “breaking the law.”
Among Wood’s fellow teachers was one who admitted she was “confused” to see Wood still have a job.
Although the Post did not mention whether Wood’s job was threatened or not, it included a statement expressing the school district’s feelings about Wood.
“The district declined to answer questions about Wood’s employment, but board members have previously said the power to punish teachers rests with school-level administrators. Wood said she has received no discipline beyond the reprimand letter,” the statement read.
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