By Matt Bittle

DOVER — The Delaware House approved a bill that would mandate schools teach Black history Thursday despite opposition from half the Republican caucus. Thirty-three representatives voted in favor of the proposal, while seven voted against it and one abstained.

House Bill 198 would require Delaware public schools incorporate into their regular curricula lessons about the trials, tribulations and accomplishments of Black people, including African history, the role slavery and white supremacy played in the development of the United States (especially the Civil War), legal segregation after the war and Black contributions to America.

The legislation aims to tackle the history and the impact of racism, “prepare students to be responsible citizens in a pluralistic democracy” and “reaffirm the commitment of free peoples to the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution,” which outlawed slavery.

The bill does not remove local control from school districts, main sponsor Rep. Sherry Dorsey Walker, a Wilmington Democrat, emphasized during the debate. An amendment attached to the bill Thursday notes the General Assembly has typically taken a hands-off approach to what schools should teach but “including Black History in the curricula is of such importance that the General Assembly has designated Black History as a subject the General Assembly chooses to require school districts and charter schools to include in their curricula.”

Under the legislation, the Department of Education would consult with groups like the NAACP, the Africana studies programs at Delaware State University and the University of Delaware, the Delaware Heritage Commission, the Delaware Black Student Coalition, the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League and Eastern Shore AFRAM.

The state does already require Black history be taught but only during February.

“Isolating Black history to 28 days does a great disservice to the countless Black Americans who have contributed to our nation throughout the past 400 years. Black history is American history, and if it is not taught, it can easily be forgotten,” Rep. Dorsey Walker said in a statement after the vote.

“When teaching the history of our nation, the achievements, challenges, contributions, struggles and triumphs of Black people should not be segregated, but be incorporated into the American story, just as they unfolded in history. By helping all students of all races to see Black people as integral to this nation, and by teaching what the full experience of being Black means, we can truly understand and really see each other.”

Despite impassioned pleas from several Black legislators, a few Republicans raised concerns about the bill, claiming they support the concept but believe the measure itself is too divisive and unfairly promotes one race.

Rep. Rich Collins, a Millsboro Republican who was the only member of the House to vote against a formal apology for slavery in 2016, said the language in the bill should be softened, with a greater focus placed on education.

“I have no doubt that some of you think I’m a racist,” said Rep. Collins, who defended himself in part by noting he previously ran an organization helping people, regardless of their race, succeed through free enterprise.

Several supporters gave strong defenses, including Rep. Stephanie T. Bolden, a Wilmington Democrat who highlighted the country’s long history of discrimination. Too few Americans, she said, know about things like the 3/5 Compromise, which declared that slaves counted for 60% of a person for purposes of representation in Congress.

GOP legislators expressed worries about a line in the bill saying black history should “Stimulate students’ reflection on the roles and responsibilities of citizens in democratic societies to combat racism, inequality, and discrimination through tools of resistance such as protest, reform, and celebration,” prompting Rep. Nnamdi Chukwuocha, a Democrat from Wilmington, to note American history emphasizes resistance to the British.

Rep. Chukwuocha also pointed out that while we venerate the Founding Fathers, they kept slaves. Indeed, despite the Declaration of Independence’s statement “all men are created equal,” 12 of the legislature’s 62 members, Rep. Chukwuocha among them, would have literally been considered less than human in the country’s early days.

Rep. Rae Moore, a Democrat representing the Middletown area, urged her colleagues to vote for the bill, which she described as encapsulating an inescapable piece of American history: “We cannot erase what happened to a group of people.”

Newark Democratic Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton sounded a similar note, writing on Twitter, “Black History is American history and hopefully future legislators will have learned that so we won’t have to listen to such vile and ignorant statements from state legislators.”

Updating definitions

The House also approved legislation updating state law to make some definitions consistent with federal law for several protected classes of people. With four votes against, all from the GOP, lawmakers Thursday sent the proposal to the Senate. (One member was absent for the vote.)

House Bill 155 would revise the definitions of “sexual orientation,” “gender identity” and “disability” throughout several sections of the Delaware Code to make the terms more inclusive. Under the measure, sexual orientation, previously defined to “exclusively” refer to “heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality,” would apply to other options as well.

The legislation would also remove language stating gender identity “may be demonstrated by consistent and uniform assertion of the gender identity or any other evidence that the gender identity is sincerely held as part of a person’s core identity; provided, however, that gender identity shall not be asserted for any improper purpose,” instead defining it as “a gender-related identity, appearance, expression or behavior of a person, regardless of the person’s assigned sex at birth.” The proposal updates the definition for a disability as well.

“Our code is a living, breathing document that needs to grow and evolve with the times. What was written and considered accurate or acceptable years ago might not be so today,” main sponsor Rep. Kendra Johnson, a Bear Democrat, said in a statement.

“Our laws should reflect the world in which we live today, and strive to be more inclusive and accepting. That is what we are doing with HB 155; we are making sure our laws are updated for 2021 and acknowledge the reality of our society.”

Rep. Collins, a strong opponent of transgender rights, argued the bill will leave children confused about their own sexuality, cause people to change their gender several times a day and lead to boys declaring themselves to be girls so they can play on female sports teams.

In response, Rep. Eric Morrison, a Glasgow Democrat who is openly gay, described his comments as deeply offensive and ignorant. Rep. Collins shot back that he is offended “constantly” in the House and Rep. Morrison should “get over it,” prompting House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf, a Rehoboth Beach Democrat, to cut him short.