The Rives Resolution Solution
By Donna Garner

Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN, Texas –  Randy Rives from Odessa, Texas, offered a Resolution on the floor of the Texas State Board of Education (7.23.10) that is meant to quell the pro-Islam, anti-Christian and anti-Judeo bias in students’ World History textbooks. The Resolution is to be added as an agenda item for the September 22-24, 2010 meeting.

Rives’ concern is that the Social Studies TEKS (Texas’ standards) tell publishers what must be put in textbooks but do not mandate what is prohibited from being placed in them. 

Rives presented definite examples from World History books used in Texas until 2003 that contained pro-Islam/anti-Judeo/anti-Christian statements.  However, many of the World History books used in Texas’ schools today were published by the same publishers.

Because the Texas State Board of Education adopted brand new Social Studies TEKS in May 2010 and new textbooks will be forthcoming, Rives believes his Resolution is very timely.

Board members were reminded that when the World History books were adopted in 2003, one particular textbook in the Table of Contents mentioned Islam 27 times. Christianity was mentioned once, and that was in the title of a document that said, “Russia Turns to Christianity.” 

Neither Judaism nor Christianity had a single textbook unit dedicated to them while the textbook contained a complete unit dedicated to Islam.

Rives emphasized that his resolution is particularly needed now because influential Middle Eastern investors are buying into the U. S. public school textbook market.

Texas’ textbook adoption process is important for other states also because publishers normally keep much of the same content in the textbooks they sell to other states.

Following are the specific passages found in Texas’ World History books that support the necessity of the Rives Resolution. These examples include:

• Pro-Islamic/anti-Judeo, anti-Christian bias;
• Half-truths;
• Selective disinformation; and
• False editorial stereotypes beinglisted

Here below, are the Rives Resolution and the accompanying documentation, as well as a Q & A that answers questions relating to the legalities of the Resolution. 

To write to the Texas State Board of Education members and encourage them to vote for the Rives Resolution, please send an e-mail to the following address sboesupport@tea.state.tx.us. In the subject line, you will need to write, “To All Texas State Board of Education Members.” 

Proposed Texas State Board of Education Resolution on Democratic Values in Social Studies Textbooks
Presented by Randy Rives on 7.23.10
 
WHEREAS pro-Islamic/anti-Christian bias has tainted some past Texas Social Studies textbooks, such as:

• Only devoting 120 student text lines to Christian beliefs, practices, and holy writings but devoting 248 (more than twice as many) to those of Islam.
• Dwelling for 27 student text lines on Crusaders’ massacre of Muslims at Jerusalem in 1099 yet censoring Muslims’ massacres of Christians there in 1244 and at Antioch in 1268.  This implies that Christians are brutal and that Muslim loss of life is significant but Islamic cruelty and Christian deaths are not significant (see documentation in Appendix I-A).
• In another instance, 82 student text lines were allotted to Christian beliefs, practices, and holy writings but 159 (almost twice as many) were allotted to Islam.  Crusaders’ massacres of European Jews were described yet the Muslim Tamerlane’s massacre of perhaps 90,000 coreligionists at Baghdad in 1401 was ignored.  Also ignored was the massacre of perhaps 100,000 Indian POWs at Delhi in 1398.  The medieval Christians were thrice charged with sexism and the Church was said to have “laid the foundations for anti-Semitism” (see documentation in Appendix I-B).
• In a third instance, 139 student text lines were spent on Christian beliefs, practices, and holy writings but a 176 text lines were spent on Islam.  These Islamic text lines claimed that Islam “brought untold wealth to thousands and a better life to millions,” while stating that “because of [Europeans' Christian] religious zeal … many peoples died and many civilizations were destroyed.”  This text also contrasted “the Muslim concern for cleanliness” with Swedes in Russia who were “the filthiest of God’s creatures” (see documentation in Appendix I-C); and,

WHEREAS pro-Islamic/anti-Christian half-truths, selective disinformation, and false editorial stereotypes still roil some Social Studies textbooks nationwide, to wit:

• Patterns of pejoratives towards Christians and superlatives toward Muslims, calling Crusaders aggressors, “violent attackers,” or “invaders” while euphemizing Muslim conquest of Christian lands as “migrations” by “empire builders” (see documentation in Appendix II);
• Politically-correct whitewashes of Islamic culture and stigmas on Christian civilization, indicting the latter for the same practices (e.g., sexism, slavery, persecution of out-groups) that they treat nonjudgmental, minimize, sugarcoat, or censor in the former (see documentation in Appendix II);
• Sanitized definitions of “jihad” that exclude religious intolerance or military aggression against non-Muslims, even though Islamic sources often include these among proper meanings of the term, which undergirds current worldwide Muslim terrorism (see documentation in Appendix II); and,

WHEREAS more such discrimination is possible as influential Middle Eastern investors buy into the U.S. public school textbook oligopoly, which they are now doing (see documentation in Appendix III); and,

WHEREAS Texas’ elected State Board of Education (SBOE) is a principal democratic check and balance on otherwise often-unresponsive editors and -unaccountable authors, and the SBOE is the premiere venue for Texans’ to effectively exercise the constitutional right of petition to redress curricular grievances; and,

WHEREAS diverse reviewers have repeatedly documented gross pro-Islamic/anti-Christian distortions in the Social Studies texts and the Social Studies TEKS cannot provide relief from these distortions because the TEKS lays out what a course should cover but not what a course should avoid; and,

WHEREAS under the Texas Education Code §28.002(h)&(i), the SBOE must enforce “the basic democratic values of our state and national heritage” that chronic partiality to one of the world’s great religions, and animus against another, flout democratic values and the letter and spirit of this rule; and,

WHEREAS under the Texas Administrative Code §66.66(c) (4) provides that, “Instructional materials may be rejected for content that clearly conflicts with the stated purpose of the Texas Education Code, §28.002(h); therefore be it

RESOLVED that the SBOE will reject future prejudicial Social Studies submissions that so offend Texas law.

Q’s & A’s on the Rives Resolution

Q:  Protesters from Florida to California have objected without ultimate success to chronic pro-Muslim/anti-Christian Social Studies textbook bias.  Why will the Rives Resolution be any more effective?

A:  Because unlike them, the Rives Resolution coordinates with a big state’s textbook adoption cycle whose market clout seriously impacts publishers’ sales.  Also unlike Texas, California has never state-approved high school textbooks, plus it has now suspended all textbook approvals until 2016 and says it may not resume them for “close to a generation,” making Texas the de facto national principal voice of public school textbook
purchasers.

Q:  Why is this Resolution not out of order?  It reopens Social Studies course standards (the TEKS) just after the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) settled new Social Studies TEKS in May 2010.

A:  The Rives Resolution differs from TEKS revisions.  The TEKS are specific and tell what courses must include.  This Resolution is general and tells what courses must avoid.  The passage of the Rives Resolution immediately after approving the TEKS is logical and proper.  It prohibits any pro-Muslim/anti-Christian bias without vainly trying to enumerate all its possible forms, sidestepping dangers in the technical legal principle Exclusio unius inclusio alterius (“Exclusion of one is inclusion of the other”), i.e., whatever is not explicitly forbidden is implicitly permitted. 

Q:  Why pass this Resolution now, when SBOE membership will differ when it votes on new Social Studies books?

A:  All SBOE members swear to uphold Texas law.  The same Texas Education Code (TEC) that binds them today will probably still apply then.  Approving the Rives Resolution now gives editors early warning of the SBOE’s duty on this issue.

Q:  How can the SBOE reject textbooks for undemocratic content?  Texas Education Code (TEC) section 31.023(a) and (b) mentions only failure to cover at least half of course standards (the TEKS), failure to meet “applicable physical specifications,” and failure to correct factual errors, as lawful grounds for rejection.

A:  Texas Education Code (TEC) section 31.023(a) and (b) does not exhaustively enumerate all the reasons why the SBOE must reject a textbook.  It is a mistake to misinterpret this partial list of reasons for rejection as the definitive complete list, in isolation from the rest of the TEC.  In fact the TEC elsewhere includes one other lawful cause for SBOE rejection of a textbook, namely, violation of TEC section 28.002(h) and (i), which states in pertinent part:

(h) … A primary purpose of the public school curriculum is to
prepare thoughtful, active citizens … with appreciation for the
basic democratic values of our state and national heritage.

(i) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules for the
implementation of this subchapter. …

This passage specifies a fourth reason for SBOE rejection of textbooks.  It requires the SBOE to promote “basic democratic values,” and thus to reject textbooks which blatantly violate that mandate.  The Rives Resolution documents multiple indisputable patterns of undemocratic, discriminatory, prejudicial pro-Muslim/anti-Christian defiant mockery of that rule in Texas World History books’ treatment of the world’s great religions.  The Rives Resolution warns publishers that in the future the SBOE will enforce the whole TEC, not just section 31.023(a) and (b).

Q:  Why does the Rives Resolution cite no pro-Muslim/anti-Christian bias in current Texas Social Studies books?

A:  Because it obeys SBOE Operating Rule §2.9(c)(2), which says:

Board action relative to textbook resolutions must take place within 90 days of adoption of the specific textbooks ….

Thus the Rives Resolution cannot address Social Studies books under current Texas adoption for over 90 days (in this case since 2003).  Instead, the Resolution’s first “Whereas” refers to 1999 editions of Social Studies books previously under Texas adoption (though most of the same books’ 2003 editions are now under current Texas adoption), and the Resolution’s second “Whereas” confirms that pro-Muslim/anti-Christian bias still vexes current Social Studies books generally nationwide, establishing probable cause in Texas.

Q:  Apart from this Resolution, does pro-Muslim/anti-Christian bias taint current Texas Social Studies books?

A:  Yes.  Like its previously-adopted 1999 Texas edition, the currently-adopted 2003 Texas edition of McDougal Littell’s World History: Patterns of Interaction devotes 27 student text lines on page 347 to Crusaders’ massacre of Muslims at Jerusalem in 1099, and 10 student text lines on page 345 to Crusaders’ massacre of 3,000 Muslims at Acre in 1191, but censors Muslim massacres of Christians at Jerusalem in 1244 and at Antioch in 1268. 

Also, the currently-adopted 2003 Texas edition of Prentice Hall’s World History: Connections to Today refers on page 217 (par. 2, lines 3-4) to Crusaders’ massacre of some European Jews but nowhere mentions the Muslim Tamerlane’s massacre of perhaps 90,000 fellow Muslims at Baghdad in 1401, and of perhaps 100,000 Indian POWs at Delhi in 1398. 

To verify these persistent pro-Muslim/anti-Christian biases, anyone can check the 2003 editions of these texts on file at the Texas Education Agency in Austin, Texas.  http://www.texasinsider.org/?p=31381