Oklahoma City, OK - On Wednesday, Republican Senate Leadership announced they would not be hearing a resolution from one of their own caucus members which would have opposed Ryan Walters’ extreme social studies curriculum. This is just another example of Republicans caving to extreme politics and unpopular radical right-wing ‘leaders’ like Ryan Walters.

These new standards politicize our nation’s history in an attempt to change the truth. Ryan Walters, in close collaboration with out-of-state conservative think-tanks, wrote these standards to try and bring politics into the classroom and impose their beliefs on every student in the state.

The resolution opposing this radical change in curriculum was the result of countless hours of volunteers calling legislators, organizing events, and bringing Oklahoma public school parents together to fight against the politicization of our children’s education. That wasn’t enough for Republican leadership, because they are afraid to stand up.

“This vote is about more than social studies standards, it marks the moment that Republican legislators chose the path of least resistance and gave up on our school children,” says Alicia Andrews, Oklahoma Democratic Party Chair. “They were bested by Ryan Walters' relentless campaign to destroy fact-based learning. The rush to force these standards through the legislature demonstrates that the Superintendent knew that his suggested "standards" would not survive scrutiny. The Democrats in the House and Senate who fought back and raised awareness deserve commendations for remaining focused on the betterment of our kids.”

Oklahoma can do better, but Republicans like Lonnie Paxton and the rest of his Senate leadership team stand in the way of making any real positive change for our kids. We need to keep fighting back.

The way we make real change in this state is sending voices to the State Capitol that will fight for strong schools and thriving kids. The next couple months matter so much in this fight. With Nathan Brewer running for State Senate, and Amy Hossain and Amanda Clinton running for State House over the next six weeks, we have a chance to send real fighters for education to the legislature.

Let’s keep up the fight, Oklahoma. They can choose not to listen, but that doesn’t mean they won’t hear from us.