Google’s Censorship Machine Targets PragerU — Again
Google has admitted its error, but it remains to be seen whether Google will learn its lesson and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
Achieving equality for men and women should not signify an attempt to make us all the same. Instead, our focus as a society should be on valuing and emphasizing the distinctive qualities that make each gender unique. “Fearless” contributor Dave Shannon feels that “society is a reflection of what happens in the home and inside the family culture.
If you have women who are out of place in society and don't know their value and worth to the [point] that they want to compete with men as if they're the same kind of thing as men … then we failed our daughters and our wives and our women.”
To enjoy more fearless conversations at the crossroads of culture, faith, sports, and comedy with Jason Whitlock and Uncle Jimmy, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
The divide between Americans seems to be widening in recent years, and the political schism doesn't appear to be narrowing any time soon. The major partisan divide in the country has gotten to the point that many Americans have contemplated a national divorce because they believe there are far too many ideological differences to bridge the line of demarcation.
An eye-opening poll found that a shocking percentage of Americans are in favor of the dissolution of the United States. According to a new Bright Line Watch survey, nearly a third of Americans want to break up the United States and create smaller, like-minded countries.
Between Jan. 28 and Feb. 8, the 2,700 poll participants were asked:
Some people say the divisions within our country have grown so deep that we would be better off dividing into more like-minded regions that would govern themselves separately. Do you support or oppose the idea of the United States dividing into more than one nation?
The survey found that 29% (10% strongly, 19% somewhat) of Americans were in favor of the dissolution of the United States into like-minded regions. There were noticeable differences based on political party lines and geography. Surprisingly, 37% of independents were most inclined for the country to go its separate ways. There were 35% of Republicans who wanted to secede, followed by 21% of Democrats who wanted their own country of like-minded individuals.
Bright Line Watch proposed to divide the U.S. into five regional unions based on geography and political affiliation:
When respondents were asked how likely they would be to support joining these hypothetical regional unions, 33% of the South and the Pacific said they would. There were 50% of Republicans in the red South region who were ready to create their own nation, and there were 41% of Democrats in the blue Pacific union who wanted to separate from the rest of the country.
New report on faith in American democracy and elections from @BrightLineWatch29% of respondents say they'd suppor… https://t.co/FGj0OVatRy— G. Elliott Morris (@G. Elliott Morris)1613660013.0
The temptation of separation might have been heightened in recent years by social media that breeds tribalism and echo chambers, while devaluing any sense of nuance. Another agitator could be the click-thirsty media that creates hyperbolic headlines that are at times antagonistic in an effort to grab eyeballs in the bustling and oversaturated social media ecosystem.
The sense of Republican and Democratic lawmakers seemingly unwilling to reach across the aisle could also spread divisiveness. The American populace regularly engages in disputes over reality, facts, science, and election results, which may galvanize calls for a divided states of America. All of these factors could fuel a lack of unity, an atmosphere where citizens distrust each other and harbor resentment of each other.
There have been fruitless secession movements in recent years in several states, including California, South Carolina, and Texas.
A 2017 Pew Research Center report revealed the widening divide between Republicans and Democrats. The study examined the partisan divide on political values between 1994 and 2017. The research discovered that the fractionalization between the two political parties has never been worse.
The partisan gap and disagreements regarding the topics of government aid to needy, racial discrimination, immigration, and diplomacy through strength have become farther apart since 1994, according to the study.
Who's responsible for the widening partisan divide?PEW did the research.Here's the result.Anyone surprised? https://t.co/C1uJcEWt8q— PragerU (@PragerU)1610584407.0
Glenn Beck: "I'm All For the LEFT's Secession"www.youtube.com
We at TheBlaze couldn't be happier to pass along to our readers some holiday musical cheer from our friends at PragerU: "Progressive Sounds of the Season."
No, it's not an actual musical compilation in the spirit of K-Tel — but it should be.
Instead, it's a parody video ad for a fictional album, and in the clip Will Witt describes — and unfortunately sings to — holiday tunes with altered lyrics that are sure to please that special woke activist in your life.
"Many of the classic songs we grew up with are just out of date for our time," Witt tells us, tongue firmly in cheek. "Filled with atrocious things like acknowledging differences in genders, celebrating the nuclear family, and appreciating differences in history. Just like wishing people a 'Merry Christmas' is obviously bigoted and outdated, it's time to bring holiday songs into the 21st century by updating them with political correctness."
He then introduces "Progressive Sounds of the Season," which contain tunes such as:
Witt adds his vocals to the latter, belting out updated lyrics: "Destroy freedom with regulations / falalalala la la lockdown / use no logic and no reason / falalalala la la lockdown."
Image source: YouTube screenshot
He also quips that "Holly Jolly Protest" is "perfect for when you're mixing those Molotov Cocktails," and "Feliz Antifa" is for all his "Latinx compadres out there."
Oh, and Witt reminds us that "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Venezuela" is a "California classic" that we shouldn't leave off our playlists.
He also sings along to "White Privilege Christmas," admitting "you'll be sorry after hearing this one." (Ya think?) Witt then begins crooning, "I'm renouncing my white privilege this Christmas / just so my friends will think I'm woke / give reparations to black children / straight white men shut up and listen / to hear a speech from Robin DiAngelo."
Image source: YouTube screenshot
DiAngelo is the author of popular progressive tome "White Fragility" — a copy of which Witt had open during the beginning of his commercial.
Since "we all have that one relative" with "a disproportionate amount of holiday cheer," Witt says the album is a "perfect gift to take that away from them and level the playing field."
And "Progressive Sounds of the Season" can be yours after three easy payments of $19.99 — and he adds that if you call right now, a "Tax the Rich" sweater will be thrown in for the "small price of $69.99."
Image source: YouTube screenshot
Some comments on the video:
Progressive Sounds of the Season with Will Wittyoutu.be
The mother of an Ohio public school student pulled her daughter from a 10th-grade history class after learning that extra credit could be acquired by watching PragerU videos — which present conservative sociopolitical views — and answering questions about them, the Huffington Post reported.
The outlet said Maumee City Schools, in response to the mother's outrage, assigned work reflecting the opposite perspective. The district also told WTOL-TV it offered the student the opportunity to transfer to a different class and removed the extra credit assignment from the curriculum.
The Huffington Post said "the PragerU videos — with titles such as 'Build the Wall,' 'Why the Right Was Right,' and 'The Left Ruins Everything' — were assigned to a 10th-grade history class at Maumee High School, along with a series of questions about the videos' 'most important messages.'"
It isn't clear from the Huffington Post story if the aforementioned videos were part of the assignment. But you can view them below if you wish:
Build the Wallyoutu.be
Why the Right is Rightyoutu.be
The Left Ruins Everythingyoutu.be
The Huffington Post said Andrea Cutway, the mother of 16-year-old student Avery Lewis, told district officials about the assignment and "immediately pulled her daughter out of the class."
More from the outlet:
Administrators first tried what they deemed a compromise by also assigning work that reflected views from the other side of the political spectrum to the student, Cutway said. But after HuffPost reached out to the school about the assignment, it decided to remove the materials from the syllabus, Todd Cramer, superintendent of Maumee City Schools, told HuffPost.
Other PragerU videos on its website dissect issues in five-minute clips and have titles such as "There Is No Gender Wage Gap," "How to Steal an Election: Mail-In Ballots," and "Is Islam a Religion of Peace?"
The teacher's class website shows that she also assigned the videos last year.
The homework assignment appeared unrelated to PragerU's latest venture, called PragerU Educators and Parents, or PREP, which launched several weeks ago. The inception of such a program suggested that these types of assignments may become more prevalent in schools.
The outlet added that Lewis was "immediately alarmed when she started her extra credit assignment last week. The assignment asked her to watch PragerU videos and then answer questions about how the videos challenged her beliefs." But the Huffington Post said "after seeing the videos, the teen didn't think she could complete the homework."
Her mother — Cutway — was "similarly shocked when her daughter showed her the assignment. She immediately fired off an email to the school's principal asking who approved the assignment and whether or not students had been given any context for PragerU's point of view," the outlet said.
"It's ALT RIGHT propaganda," Cutway said in the email to the principal, which the Huffington Post said she provided to the outlet. "If you Google PragerU and spend a few minutes scrolling, you will see that this site is controversial at best."
But the outlet said that even after Lewis and administrators came up with the solution of offering her an assignment reflecting the opposing point of view, Cutway said the larger issue was that PragerU videos were part of the curriculum.
"When I talked to the principal and vice principal, they acted like this was just another assignment," Cutway told the Huffington Post. "I said, 'I think at this time we need to end this call, gentlemen.' … I don't know what you have allowed to bring into your public school."
She told the outlet in regard to PragerU that "this really is some scary stuff. I do feel like they have found a way to get into the public school system."
The Huffington Post said the teacher who assigned the videos did not respond to a request for comment.
But the outlet said "since Cutway's conversation with the school administrators, district leaders appeared to have had a change of heart and said they removed the assignment from the syllabus, though they stopped short of condemning the overall use of such materials."
Here's the statement, in part, that the district released to WTOL Tuesday afternoon:
Maumee City Schools is aware of the online story published by Huffington Post on October 19. We would like to clarify the sequence of events and correct impressions resulting from that article.
Students were offered an extra credit assignment intended to challenge their critical thinking skills by examining political cartoons. Students had options and were able to choose from sites presenting either liberal, moderate or conservative viewpoints through political cartoons. The assignment challenged students to analyze a cartoon's content, context, symbols, labels, tone and more.
A second option in the extra credit assignment asked students to view a video from a conservative website, analyze it and explain what they may have learned from it, and how it may have challenged or supported their own beliefs.
A parent who objected to the assignment contacted school administrators. In alignment with our District goals, we made immediate changes to support the student. An alternative assignment was offered, and the student was given the opportunity to transfer to a different class. Our first goal was to ensure the student would be comfortable fully participating in the curriculum. Additionally, the extra credit assignment was removed from the class syllabus. All of this occurred before the Huffington Post contacted the District.
The station added that the course syllabus said "extra credit is available by completing political cartoon analysis assignments and/or Prager U assignments — see handout."
WTOL, citing the teacher's website, reported that students could watch a PragerU video and respond to prompts such as "Something new and interesting I learned...." and "What is the most important message from the video that others should know?"
Students also were given the option to review a political cartoon instead of a PragerU video — and the assignment listed conservative news site Townhall as one of the recommended sources for political cartoons, the station said.
PragerU also was listed as an extra credit option during the winter 2019-20 semester, WTOL said.
While PragerU didn't immediately reply Tuesday afternoon to TheBlaze's request for comment, the organization did refer to the controversy on Twitter:
"Having a visceral reaction" because a 10th grade teacher in Ohio offered extra credit to review PragerU videos.😳… https://t.co/7idmKyugAv— PragerU (@PragerU)1603209537.0