The Dangerous Threat of Censorship in US Schools: A Violation of Basic Human Rights

The recent efforts by US states to ban school curricula offering historically accurate accounts of racism in the United States have been condemned as attacks on fundamental human rights. Human Rights Watch, together with Black-led US civil rights organizations and scores of other organizations and individuals, has endorsed the Freedom to Learn Campaign, which was developed in response to decisions by state legislatures and local school boards to ban thousands of books.

These measures banning anti-bias and racial justice education in states like Florida are not only a violation of fundamental human rights but also a threat to US democracy, as they ban access to the kind of information that motivates voting and political participation. As such, efforts to protect the freedom to learn are aligned with obligations of the United States under Article 7 of the United Nations International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), which the US ratified in 1994.

“The May 3 Day of Action in support of the freedom to learn underscores that children and adults have fundamental rights to education and to access accurate information,” said Alison Parker, deputy US director at Human Rights Watch. “Attacks on education are attacks on US democracy because they ban access to the kind of information that motivates voting and political participation.”

Two landmark moments in US history were accompanied by special efforts to provide strong and accurate racial justice education. After the US Constitution was amended in 1870 to end restrictions on the right to vote based on race, formerly enslaved people set up Freedmen’s Schools to provide both civics and racial justice education. Similarly, ahead of the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Black Americans and their allies created hundreds of Citizenship Schools to educate the disenfranchised.

To combat prejudice and intolerance, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the UN body monitoring compliance with the treaty, in recent years has urged countries to engage in affirmative efforts to ensure that textbooks contain “chapters about the history and cultures of peoples of African descent,” and to “encourage and support the publication and distribution of books and other print materials, as well as the broadcasting of television and radio programs about their history and cultures.”

The measures banning anti-bias and racial justice education in the US have been met with opposition, as legislators in at least 17 states have proposed or enacted laws to protect fundamental rights to education and to access information. Furthermore, the College Board, a nonprofit organization that administers tests and Advanced Placement courses, has announced its commitment to revise its 2022 Advanced Placement African American Studies course, which should include restoring content removed in February 2023 under pressure from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

“The College Board and states across the country should ensure that students everywhere have access to authors, ideas, and concepts that can help them make sense of their history, the current moment, and the future,” said Parker. “These rights-respecting efforts should be affirmed and replicated to protect the human rights of children and to ensure that racial discrimination is not tolerated in the United States.”

The US government’s record under the Convention is not without criticism, as Human Rights Watch, jointly with the American Civil Liberties Union, published a report in August 2022. The report aims to improve the US government’s record and engage affirmative efforts to promote tolerance and combat prejudice against national, racial, and ethnic groups.

In summary, the Freedom to Learn Campaign, developed in response to measures banning anti-bias and racial justice education in states like Florida, highlights the fundamental rights of children and adults to education and access to accurate information. The ban, which is a violation of fundamental human rights and a threat to US democracy, should be opposed and countered with laws that protect fundamental rights to education and to access information. Governments should engage in affirmative efforts to ensure that textbooks contain accurate information about the history and cultures of peoples of African descent.

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