Ranking Member Scott Speaks On Crucial Communism Teaching Act
WASHINGTON – Today, Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby Scott” delivered the following floor remarks in opposition to H.R. 5349, the "Crucial Communism Teaching Act." This bill would provide the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation with resources to create a curriculum aimed at teaching high school students about the detrimental effects of communism, totalitarianism, and similar ideologies. Ranking Member Scott expressed concerns that the bill oversimplifies these complex issues and lacks historical context, potentially leading to a skewed understanding of political ideologies.
Watch Ranking Member Scott’s floor remarks on YouTube.
“Thank you. Mr. Speaker, I rise on H.R. 5349, the so-called Crucial Communism Teaching Act. Let me start by acknowledging that there is value in educating our students about the dangers of totalitarianism and the atrocities committed under communist regimes. But the truth is, we are debating a bill that skirts around key historical lessons and only risks further politicizing education.
“Rather than bringing forward substantive legislation to address challenges that our children face in the classroom, Republicans want us to focus on this narrowly tailored bill that leaves out important issues that we should be discussing about communism. We should be taking action to address the actual challenges our children are facing like legislation to increase academic achievement, increase investment in early childhood education, closing the growing achievement gap in our schools, tackle the mental health crisis among our youth, increasing graduation rates, making college more affordable — these are the challenges that people are actually facing. But this bill, in fact the entire session, has been silent on those issues.
“Furthermore, this bill fails to provide a complete and comprehensive approach to teaching students about the full history of communism. If we truly want to educate students about the dangers of extremism, we should teach them about all forms — not just communism, but how about fascism and other ideologies which have sought to strip people of their rights and freedoms. Even with communism, the bill neglects to mention the long history of using the label “communism” to enflame, scare, and pit Americans against each other. The bill remains silent when it comes to specifics, such as the discussion about the history of the House Un-American Activities Committee. Many fear that this approach would not only oversimplify this complex issue but also distort our students’ understanding of history.
“What is more troubling is that while we’re debating this bill, Republicans are ignoring the actual efforts to invest in education and ensure all children have the opportunity to succeed. We should be passing legislation that prioritizes their future, not creating distractions with divisive partisan messaging.
“So I urge my colleagues to come together to support legislation that would truly make a difference in the lives of American students. This legislation only directs an organization to create a limited curriculum on communism that public schools can adopt — or not — at the discretion of the local school system. Let’s focus instead on policies that improve academic achievement, close achievement gaps, increase graduation rates, and make higher education more affordable — issues that demand our immediate attention.
“Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would advise my colleague that I have no further speakers and I am prepared to close when he is prepared to close. I reserve the balance of my time.”
Read a fact sheet on H.R. 5349 here.
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