FAILURE IS NOT OUR DESTINY: Texas Insider Report
By Pastor Kyev P. Tatum Sr.
FORT WORTH TEXAS - There has been an incredible amount of attention given to the nearly 18 month review & adoption process of the Social Studies Standards by the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) and I believe now is the time for people of good will to reconcile their differences before our children give up on the process of education.
Thousands of children will dropout of school before these new standards even take place.
That is the tragedy in the entire debate that no one is really talking about.
Hundreds of thousands of children have not developed the basic reading skills or comprehension skills needed to understand any of the curriculum much less the content or context of the standards.
I must admit there is a lot of propaganda going out throughout the process on both sides. I watched in total disbelief as adult people acted like little children fighting over a piece of candy.
We need to look deeper before we sign or spread misinformation about what happened.
As a preacher and educator I was offended that many educators wanted to take Christmas out of the curriculum and some of my friends tried to distort the separation of the Church & State doctrine. The Church (the people) has every
right to participate in state affairs however many of my friends believe the state has the right to engage in the affairs of the Church.
This is wrong and unconstitutional.
So I support the religious freedom language approved by a bipartisan vote of 11-3 that allows students to read the words of the First Amendment of the Constitution and compare and contrast such language with the phrase separation of church and state.
In Texas the state has even gone so far as to tax Church property and demand that the Church give them a detailed list of all of their assets or risk the lost of their tax exempt status.
Churches are not exempted from taxes but immune from taxes. The Church is sovereign and these same people want our children to think otherwise.
In all fairness Im neither Democrat or Republican but a voice of reason in the middle of this madness.
We must be wise before we allow others to lead us down a path of no return. I do like many of the updated standards however some of the recommendations
were problematic.
Lets be fair on both sides and stop the public display of blame and shame. No one wins and our children will be confused for years to come.
Lets recognize the strength of the overall product of the social studies standards and not get held up or weighed down by a few examples that can be criticized or supported with reasonable arguments from both sides.
Lets get back to focusing on educating our kids and helping them avoid becoming another drop-out statistic.
Lets move forward together to make our schools better for all.
We must teach our children that failure is not our destiny.
Pastor Kyev P. Tatum Sr. a distinguished graduate of Trimble Tech High School & the University of North Texas is pastor of Friendship Rock Baptist Church in Fort Worth Texas and the president of the Fort Worth Tarrant County Chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference a international civil rights advocacy group founded by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957.
right to participate in state affairs however many of my friends believe the state has the right to engage in the affairs of the Church.
This is wrong and unconstitutional.
So I support the religious freedom language approved by a bipartisan vote of 11-3 that allows students to read the words of the First Amendment of the Constitution and compare and contrast such language with the phrase separation of church and state.
In Texas the state has even gone so far as to tax Church property and demand that the Church give them a detailed list of all of their assets or risk the lost of their tax exempt status.
Churches are not exempted from taxes but immune from taxes. The Church is sovereign and these same people want our children to think otherwise.
In all fairness Im neither Democrat or Republican but a voice of reason in the middle of this madness.
We must be wise before we allow others to lead us down a path of no return. I do like many of the updated standards however some of the recommendations 
