Eva Longoria rips Arizona ban of Mexican-American studies
Aug 26, 2013, 3:03 PM | Updated: 3:04 pm
PHOENIX — Actress Eva Longoria said the ban of Mexican-American studies in Arizona is “more tragic than SB 1070.”
According to the Huffington Post, Longoria said the censorship was “criminal.”
“I think it’s even more tragic than SB 1070,” Longoria told The Huffington Post. “This is where our communities can learn about our history and to prevent anyone from doing that is criminal.”
Longoria was referring to a 2010 ban that prohibited students in Tucson from taking courses about the racial and socioeconomic history of Mexicans in America. The classes were banned under an umbrella law meant to dispose of classes that encourage the overthrow of the U.S. government, foster racial resentment or promote ethnic solidarity.
Facing the loss of 10 percent of the district’s funding for failure to comply — about $14 million over the fiscal year — Tucson’s school board voted to suspend the classes in December of 2011. Tucson administrators plucked seven books, almost all of them by Latino authors, from the city’s classrooms and prohibited them from instruction, citing concerns over litigation.
Prior to being banned, researchers claimed the classes fostered student development and recommended the courses be expanded.
