Resident Alleges Marxist Lessons At Elmhurst Schools

ELMHURST, IL — An Elmhurst resident told the local school board last week that teachers were indoctrinating students with Marxist ideology in the classroom. He provided no specific examples, despite saying he had a "mountain of evidence."

During public comments, resident Tom Chavez said his family was previously happy with Elmhurst School District 205, but that is no longer the case. He said he never received the memo that critical race theory and Marxist ideology had been incorporated into the lesson plans in the schools.

"I'm here to shed some light on one of the most polarizing developments in our community, the ideologically and politically charged curriculum being imposed on the kids in our schools," Chavez said. "Some will argue indoctrination is not really happening and that guys like me are blowing things way out of proportion. I would argue there is a mountain of evidence that proves indoctrination is precisely what is happening."

He asked whether the board knew modules from the Zinn Education Project were being used in classes. The project is named after Howard Zinn, a liberal historian who wrote "A People's History of the United States" in 1980. Zinn, who died in 2010, once told a biographer that he was "something of a Marxist."

Chavez said Zinn was a devout Marxist and anti-capitalist and belonged to numerous Communist front groups.

"His biased account of American history rails against white oppressors, the free market and our military," Chavez said.

In his speech, Chavez pointed to a York High School teacher's online comments in praise of the Zinn Education Project. But he gave no examples in which a teacher, in his view, imparted Marxist ideology to students.

He said teachers should present both sides of arguments, so that students can apply their own critical thinking.

"But that's not what's happening," Chavez said. "What we have instead is a growing and pervasive focus in our curriculum and our in-school culture on race, equity, systemic racism and gender identity. The board has a role to play in making sure that District 205 teachers' content accurately reflects American ideals."

Another resident, Guido Nardini, responded to Chavez's comments.

"There is no there there," Nardini told the board. "Howard Zinn is as American as apple pie. One man's indoctrination is another man's education... Kids' jobs are to perceive their education and understand it and become adults in that process of education. At high school, the level of history teaching is complex enough for someone to be able to face different representations of the American experience."

School board members did not respond to the comments.