Angelo Maldonado-Liu

Dr. Morgan

CTW 1A-Synthesis Assignment

6 November 2017

Knowledge is Power

The film Precious Knowledge is about ethnic studies in the Tucson School District.

Because of the low graduation rate of latino students in the school systems across the United

States, they implemented ethnic studies classes. The goal was to help give latino students

something they can feel connected to, instead of always having to learn about the history of the

white man. The Superintendent of public instruction, Tom Horne, and a state legislator, John

Huppenthal, wanted to remove the ethnic studies for racist reasons, claiming that the classes

were teaching students that they should put value in race. Two reviews about this film, written by

Jos Garca and Juan Lopez, support the idea that this film showcases the racism that still exists

in the U.S. government today by having us follow the path behind a racist law that removes

ethnic studies from the classrooms.

The development of the law began with racism. A point that Garcia makes supports this.

Former Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne became an outspoken

opponent of MAS that demanded TUSD shut down the program and start teaching students to

treat each other as individuals rather than on the basis of their race.(Garcia) He uses this as a

way of saying that these classes are teaching segregation, that these classes teach students to

value race. There are many flaws in this argument, and Lopez explains one of them. Lopez states

students of any other race, culture, or belief system are not barred from taking part in these

classes.(Lopez) The reason why this is a strong statement is that students of any race can be in
the classes, and as seen in the movie, there are some white students in the classes. Since the

classes teach a sense of community to the students, this means that the white students are

included in the community, showing that the idea of the class is not based on hating white

people.

Racism was very prevalent with Tom Horne. He was a man who was working in the

government, and claims to have walked with Martin Luther King Jr. to Washington D.C.. He

uses this to try and dispel the idea of him being racist, using Kings idea that there is no such

thing as separate but equal. Tom Hornes idea of that equality is to remove the separate but equal

classrooms. He doesnt realize that the argument makes no sense. His point is rendered even

more moot when one realizes that these classes teach the history and heritage of a people that

have been in place long before the United States was a reality.(Lopez) . He is clearly trying to

remove the ethnic classes for racist reasons. Along with that, it is a class that is clearly helping

students graduate. Based on the statistics provided by the movie approximately 50 % of Latino

students drop out and that these numbers keep getting worse every year.(Garcia) There are

many latino students that drop out of high school and dont graduate. When comparing that to

the percentage of latino students in the ethnic studies classes that graduate, which is stated to be

approximately 93%, you can see there is clear improvement, which means that until there is at

least an equal alternative to the the ethnic studies classes, the removal of the classes shouldnt be

considered. When Horne was asked if he had visited the classrooms, he said he had not been

invited, but later says he had been, but didnt try to visit. (Garcia) He hadnt even seen if the

classrooms are what he is claiming they are. He is just trying to forward his racist ideas on the

school district with no reasons to back it up.

 John Huppenthal was another government official that was trying to remove the ethnic

studies from the Tucson school district. He learned from Tom Hornes mistake of lying in front

of the school board and not going to the classes, so he attended one of the classes. During and

after the classroom visit, Huppenthal focused on the classroom and teachers aesthetic

presentations rather than on the MAS pedagogical approach and results.(Garcia) Huppenthal

didnt focus on what was being taught, but more on the surroundings and environment. While

that is important, it shouldnt be the only focus. Huppenthal commented in the board meeting

that the teacher seemed well-groomed. Huppenthal also said that he felt the curriculum was

changed for his arrival, and that what was discussed in class wasnt what was usually discussed

in classes. He also told the board that the opinions on the founding fathers was very wrong,

talking about how they owned slaves. He seemed to not want the idea of the founding fathers to

be tarnished by their realities. This shows either shame, or racism.

This is brought to light as racism though with the fact that they used the removal of the

ethnic studies for political gain. Additional evidence shows that defendants were pursuing

these discriminatory ends in order to make political gains. Horne and Huppenthal repeatedly

pointed to their efforts against the MAS program in their respective 2011 political campaigns,

including in speeches and radio advertisements. The issue was a political boon to the candidates,

Tashima wrote.(Education Week) There is evidence that points to Horne and Huppenthal not

having done this for the political gain. They used the removal of ethnic studies classes in the

Tucson School District to further their political reach, and they played on the racism existing in

the country to push their way to the forefront of the other candidates in their respective

campaigns. They themselves might not be racist, but the people they are appealing to are racist,
and they are trying to gain their favor. They created a call to action among the racist individuals

so that they could get votes and be elected.

There is racism everywhere, but at the least there shouldnt be racism in the government.

When our government officials are trying to appeal to racist voters, then they make racist

decisions, which put people of the minorities at a disadvantage. With the latinos in the Tucson

School District, they lost the ethnic studies classes that was helping them graduate. The two

government officials, Tom Horne and John Huppenthal, removed the ethnic studies classes and

used that fact to help them get into office, which proves that they had racist agendas to get the

support of racist voters. The reasoning behind removing the law was flawed, as there were many

holes in them. Tom Horne didnt even attend one of the classes, so he had no idea if what he was

claiming about that was true or not, but he didnt care, because he wanted it gone to gain the

support of racist voters. John Huppenthal did attend one of the ethnic studies classes, but chose

only to pay attention to the atmosphere, not the pedagogical approach or the results of the

teachings. This meant that he disagreed with the atmosphere, and didnt bring to the table how

much the class was helping latino students. Racism is in our government, and in our society and

education system, but we have to stand together to fight this racism and to identify it where it

arises, and stop it before it can destroy the good that is being done.

Works Cited

McGinnis, Erin I. Precious Knowledge. Dos Vatos Productions, 2011.

Garca, J. Urban Rev (2013) 45: 94. https://doi-org.libproxy.scu.edu/10.1007/s11256-012-0227-0

Lopez, Juan J. Independent Lens on PBS Features Mexican-American Identity Film, Precious

Knowledge. Dawn of Nations Today 2012, May 2012,

nas.unm.edu/dawnofnations/viewpoints.html.

Press, The Associated. Racial Discrimination Was Behind Ethnic-Studies Courses Ban, Judge

Rules. Education Week, 29 Aug. 2017, www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2017/08/30/racial-

discrimination-was-behind-ethnic-studies-courses-ban.html.