In what feels like the inevitable (and deeply disturbing) result of pushing “other side” and “middle ground” rhetoric, a school administrator in Texas has been caught advising teachers to include a book that has an “opposing” view if they choose to include a book about the Holocaust in their classroom library. Yes, really.

In audio obtained by NBC News, Gina Peddy, the Carroll Independent School District’s executive director of curriculum and instruction, is heard discussing how teachers can comply with House Bill 3979. During the training session about which books teachers were allowed to include in their classroom libraries, Peddy suggested that if they include a book about the Holocaust, they should also provide a book from an “opposing” perspective. The training came within days of a parent complaining that an elementary school teacher included an anti-racism book in her class library. 

“Just try to remember the concepts of [House Bill] 3979,” Peddy explained in the less than two-minute audio clip which was secretly taken by a staff member during the Friday meeting. The legislation, which will go into effect in December, mandates that teachers in Texas offer up multiple perspectives and views when it comes to learning or discussing “widely debated” or “controversial” issues.

Of course, at this point in our society, this sort of bill means that racist, classist, ableist, and otherwise regressive, offensive ideas are about to get the same credence and learning time as actually important, progressive models. It also means that students (not to mention teachers who are pressured to include those materials) may be exposed to legitimate trauma from having to consume and “learn” or “debate” those harmful viewpoints. And if you’re wondering if this all is connected to the Republican hysteria about critical race theory (CRT), you’re correct. 

An elementary school teacher who spoke to NBC News and asked to remain anonymous told the outlet that teachers are “literally afraid” they’ll be punished over what books they have in their classrooms. “There are no children’s books that show the ‘opposing perspective’ of the Holocaust or the ‘opposing perspective’ of slavery,” the teacher told the outlet. “Are we supposed to get rid of all of the books on those subjects?”

Here is the audio, as released from NBC News.

“We are in the middle of a political mess,” Peddy is heard saying at the beginning of the recording. “And you are in the middle of a political mess. And so we just have to do the best that we can.” After a teacher pointed out that they’re scared, Peddy said they’re professionals and she trusts them. “We will fight it together,” she said. “We will.”

According to NBC News, teachers then pushed for more examples of appropriate books, arguing they didn’t understand the new guidelines. And here is the key part of dialogue from the recording, where Peddy provides an example:

GP: “Make sure that if, if … you have a book on the Holocaust, that you have one that has an opposing … that has other perspectives.”

Teacher: “How do you oppose the Holocaust? What?”

GP: “Believe me, it’s come up.”

Teacher: “So, Number the Stars …?” (For reference, Number the Stars is an often-assigned book for young readers about the Holocaust, written by Lois Lowry.)

Karen Fitzgerald, a spokesperson for the district, gave a statement to NBC News about the situation. 

“Our purpose is to support our teachers in ensuring they have all of the professional development, resources and materials needed,” Fitzgerald said in part. “Our district has not and will not mandate books be removed nor will we mandate that classroom libraries be unavailable.” She stressed that the district “recognizes that all Texas teachers are in a precarious position with the latest legal requirements” and that if teachers are unsure about including a specific book, they should meet with their principal and team to discuss. 

As Daily Kos has covered, schools have taught some really, really disturbing lessons. For example, one Texas charter school received major backlash after having middle schoolers list “positive” parts of life as a slave. In Wisconsin, a teacher resigned after an investigation into a disturbing question about how to “punish” slaves.

We’ve also covered teachers using racist symbols when talking about Asian Americans, a teacher who blamed Breonna Taylor for her own death while teaching via Zoom, and elementary schoolers who were made to pick cotton and sing slave songs during a field trip. Getting structural racism out of our schools is going to be a long, long fight, but it’s one we simply cannot give up on, especially when Republicans are so eager to fight us on it.