In a move that's stirred up controversy, Arizona's education chief Tom Horne has teamed up with PragerU, a conservative digital media organization, to push their educational content in the state's public schools, Phoenix New Times reported. This announcement makes Arizona the fifth state to promote PragerU's materials, which have drawn criticism for presenting a conservative slant on issues like slavery and American history.
Horne has defended the partnership stating, "It’s alright for teachers to teach controversial views, as long as both sides are presented," a notion that has raised eyebrows given his admitted lack of knowledge on what "left-wing" sites the Department of Education might also promote. Critics, including Arizona Education Association President Marisol Garcia, have slammed PragerU's content as "hyperpartisan and substandard" with no place in schools.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Senate is also wielding a heavy hand on LGBTQ issues, passing two bills that target drag with potential criminal consequences, Phoenix New Times reported. SB 1698 and SB 1030 seek to criminalize drag shows and penalize both performers and parents who involve their children in drag-related activities.
The first bill, SB 1698, would label parents who take their kids to drag shows as sex offenders, while the second, SB 1030, frames drag as an 'adult-oriented business,' effectively zoning such performances out of reach from schools and playgrounds. Critics, including Jeff Parales, owner of Phoenix Bar Kobalt, argue that these bills attack an already marginalized community and liken the clampdown to tactics seen "in Communist China and totalitarian regimes like Iran," as per the Phoenix New Times report.
In defending their ideology, supporters of both the PragerU content in schools and the criminalization of drag underscores a sharp rightward shift in Arizona's educational and social policy landscape. Both moves have stirred up significant opposition from educators, parents, and community leaders concerned about the future of academic freedom and LGBTQ rights in the state.
