Georgia lawmakers sent a bill to increase parental oversight of schools to Gov. Brian Kemp for his signature on Friday, while a bill regulating what schools can teach on racial issues neared final passage.
The measures are key parts of a conservative agenda on schools. The Republican Kemp has already signed a bill letting parents opt their children out of school mask mandates for five years, and a bill is on his desk that would force public schools to respond to challenges of materials parents consider obscene. Still alive, but facing more challenges is a bill that would prohibit transgender girls from playing on girls’ sports teams.
House Bill 1084, which bans the teaching of “divisive concepts” on race in Georgia public schools, went back to the House for representatives to agree to changes after passing the Senate 32-21 on Friday. The measure, based on a now-repealed executive order from President Donald Trump, has attracted opposition throughout the session from teacher groups and liberal groups. But Republicans say it’s absolutely necessary to ban critical race theory, a term stretched from its original meaning as an examination of how societal structures perpetuate white dominance to a broader indictment of diversity initiatives and teaching about race.
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