State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters spoke about his view on indoctrination and education curriculum to an angry crowd at the Norman Public Library Central during a meeting hosted by the Cleveland County Republican Party Thursday evening.
Upon arriving at the library, Walters was met with protesters outside the entrance and across the street in Andrews Park. He was booed as he entered the event space, while a few other members clapped at his arrival. Inside, audience members were presented a list of decorum rules from Cleveland County GOP Chair Gary Barksdale.
While the rest of the room was filling, the two front rows were reserved for the “executive committee.” However, as the night progressed, most of those seats remained empty as upset audience members and protesters lined the back.
For over an hour, Walters accepted questions from the audience, which included teachers and parents. One educator asked Walters what he was doing to help teachers, adding Walters is putting teachers in a position where they have two choices: follow the law or teach what they feel their students need.
Walters was asked about history curriculums and his firm stance against critical race theory, specifically how teaching the Tulsa Race Massacre does not fall under that definition.
“I would never tell a kid that because of your race, because of the color of your skin, or your gender or anything like that, you are less of a person or are inherently racist,” Walters said. “That doesn’t mean you don’t judge the actions of individuals. ... But to say it was inherent in that because of their skin is where I say that is critical race theory. You're saying that race defines a person.”
The Q&A session continued as the audience questioned Walters on reading curriculum and removing books from classrooms, the state’s misspending of COVID-19 education funds and his hatred of teacher unions.
A heated moment between the audience and Gary Barksdale resulted in a least two people being removed from the meeting, while another frustrated person walked out later. Throughout the whole meeting, Walters was heckled, booed and faced debate over the validity of his comments. A few members clapped in support over the course of the meeting.
Walters’ comments were placed in a national spotlight on Friday, with the satirical media outlet The Onion writing a parody article claiming Oklahoma schools were to teach students the Tulsa Race Massacre was a “crime of passion.”
MSNBC aired a segment Friday on The Beat with Ari Melber about Walters’ comments. Melber detailed the events of the massacre, which happened in the Greenwood District of Tulsa — often referred to as “Black Wall Street” — in 1921.
Melber said Walters’ comments were an attempt to rewrite history, aiming to control the present and the future.
Melber discussed Walters’ description of teachers’ unions as “terrorist organizations” from a May state House of Representatives meeting during the segment.
Following the national backlash, Walters spoke to several Oklahoma news outlets. In an interview with Fox 25, Walters defended his comments on the Tulsa Race Massacre, saying the media had taken his response out of context, but did condemn the massacre.
“The Tulsa Race Massacre was a terrible, evil event perpetrated by folks that chose to act in a way that was evil and racist,” Walters said. “I said (at the event) it was evil, all of our kids need to know it and they need to judge the action of those people.”
The coverage of Walters' Thursday evening event in Norman in the article below was written in the form of a live blog.
6:45 p.m.
OU Daily asked Ryan Walters if he had any communication with Norman Public Schools district leaders regarding former teacher Summer Boismier's case. He said his attorneys have communicated but he doesn't know if there has been a response from NPS officials.
When asked if he still plans to vote to revoke Boismier's license in August, Walters said yes, but he does not know how the rest of the State Board of Education plans to vote.
Walters commended Norman's Aviation Academy when OU Daily asked him his thoughts on the state of education in Oklahoma's third largest city.
"I think they're doing some great things there," Walters said. "I'd love to come back and do more of a deep dive in that."
6:31 p.m.
The meeting adjourned and attendees left the room while Ryan Walters took questions privately.
6:26 p.m.
Walters said he is pursuing 10 times the investments in reading and math than the state currently has. He said he promises to give students all the resources necessary to succeed in STEM fields more so than ever before.
6:17 p.m.
Walters was asked about a coach in Ringling who is under investigation for allegedly having students complete physical exercise naked. The question asked about double standards for the coach compared to former Norman Public School teacher Summer Boismier.
Walters said the state Department of Education has been in contact with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation for the case but did not comment on why the coach was not still on leave.
Walters said the difference was Boismier actively admitted to breaking state law and planning to continue to break state law, and that is unacceptable for teachers in Oklahoma.
6:11 p.m.
Ryan Walters said the state is launching the most comprehensive reading plan this fall to help students with English so they can prosper in Oklahoma.
When asked what his solution is to alleged indoctrination in schools, Walters said more academically-rich content will improve students' reading comprehension and "get indoctrination out."
5:53 p.m.
Ryan Walters told attendees he is planning a complete overhaul of the report card system in Oklahoma public schools.
Walters then took questions from attendees and walked around the room answering inquiries from parents, teachers and media outlets.
5:39 p.m.
Ryan Walters took the podium and commended Norman's career tech programs. He said the reason Oklahoma is 49th in education is because the state has empowered indoctrination and not education.
"What we continue to see is a teacher's union that wants to indoctrinate your children," Walters said.
Walters' speech was met with raucous outroar by the attendees. Barksdale took the podium and reminded attendees of the decorum rules for the meeting.
5:34 p.m.
The meeting began with a prayer, moment of silence and the pledge. The motion was met with an outrage by attendees in opposition to Walters.
Gary Barksdale, Cleveland County Republican Party chair, welcomed former Ward 5 Councilmember Rarchar Tortorello and Sherrie Conley, Oklahoma House District 20 Representative.
Prior to the meeting:
Attendees gathered outside the Oklahoma room in the library as Gary Barksdale, chair of the Cleveland County Republican Party, set up the room.
State Superintendent Ryan Walters was escorted up to the third floor into the meeting room by members of the executive team for the Cleveland County Republican Party.
