GOP’s Robinson tells Moms for Liberty he wants to get DEI out of schools, government
Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson made a rare appearance at the North Carolina Legislative Building on Wednesday to speak to the conservative group Moms for Liberty, telling them he wants to replace DEI.
DEI stands for diversity, equity and inclusion, and has been targeted by Republicans so far in the UNC System, which is eliminating DEI programs. Robinson wants more such eliminations.
“These agendas need to be removed from our schools,” Robinson told the Moms for Liberty members. “They need to be removed from our government. We need to get back to back to doing what we do best.”
Robinson, who is now the lieutenant governor, said that DEI standing for diversity, equity and inclusion “sounds nice, but we all know, it’s wrecking systems all across the nation, all across the state.”
Robinson is running this fall against Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein.
“Our teachers deserve our respect and appreciation,” Morgan Hopkins, a spokesperson for Stein’s campaign, said in a statement. “Mark Robinson calls them ‘wicked people’ and ‘demons.’
“He just wants to fight job-killing culture wars. Josh Stein understands the importance of strengthening public education and as Governor, he will fight for badly-needed investments that support teachers and students and help strengthen North Carolina’s future.”
Robinson’s definition of DEI
Speaking to Moms for Liberty, Robinson said, “Well, I’ve got a plan to replace DEI with something I call DEI.
“My version of DEI is not diversity, equity and inclusion. My version of DEI is something ... this nation, this state, our institutions need to bring back.. ... It’s what we used to search for in this country: ... discipline, excellence and intelligence.”
He was met with cheers from the crowd.
Robinson praised Moms for Liberty for “standing up for what is right.”
The ultra-conservative group of mothers arose during pandemic school closures for its opposition to mask requirements in schools, as well as what members call indoctrination in schools.
Jessica Lewis, a parent of two children in the Wake County school system, is vice chair of the Wake County chapter of Moms for Liberty. She told The News & Observer that she liked Robinson’s speech because he “stands for parental rights. Everything that we believe in the school systems, getting the indoctrination away from the kids and gender ideologies. He’s a strong lieutenant governor right now, and I hope he is our next governor.”
She claimed that DEI “is hurting our kids” and said she plans to fight the Wake County School Board “until they get the basics of reading and writing and math for my kids, and get DEI and CRT, social-emotional learning, out of the equation.”
Moms for Liberty and Robinson events
The Moms for Liberty group was there Wednesday for a legislative advocacy day. Last year on that day, they were at the lieutenant governor’s office a block away.
Brooke Weiss, the Mecklenburg County chapter chair of Moms for Liberty, said that in addition to speaking at their legislative day a year ago, Robinson also attended the group’s national summit last year.
“He’s always supported us,” Weiss said. “I don’t even think we gave him a copy of our legislative agenda. But we like him, because he talks about a lot of the same things that we talk about.”
‘Anti-government extremist group’
Last year, the Southern Poverty Law Center labeled Moms for Liberty as an “anti-government extremist group.” The center has given the same label to the John Birch Society, which had a speaker at Wednesday’s Moms for Liberty event.
A repeated theme from speakers was the charge that LGBTQ groups are trying to indoctrinate and sexualize students.
“If only our world was filled with sunshine and dad jokes and rainbows,” said Charlie Misseijer, national director of policy and legislative affairs for Moms for Liberty. “Well, I suppose it’s currently filled with rainbows.
“But it’s the shoving down of our throats with agendas like that during the month of June, celebrating adult sexual choices and forcing our children to accept those choices or pay the consequences.”
Misseijer told the audience that it’s getting harder to fight that agenda because “Satan is like a roaring lion, seeking who he may devour.” He said moms “have chosen to arm themselves to fight the wiles of the devil.”
After the rally, Weiss told reporters she hadn’t heard Misseijer’s Satan comments.
Weiss said Moms for Liberty is not against LGBTQ individuals, pointing to a speech given Wednesday by Tia Bess, a lesbian who is the group’s national director of engagement. Weiss said they’re not trying to drive culture wars.
“We’re accused of being right-wing Nazis, you know, lunatics,” Weiss told reporters. “We sit down with a lot of Democrats in these buildings, and we’re concerned about the same things they are. When you talk about one-third of North Carolina fourth-graders not reading at a proficient level, that’s a problem. I don’t care what your politics are.”
Moms for Liberty is making a national push to get states to require high school students to pass a citizenship/civics test in order to graduate.
North Carolina high school students are required to take civics. But a state-mandated end-of-course exam in civics was dropped several years ago as part of an effort to cut down on standardized testing.
“If we’re expecting these kids to go out into the world and be our leaders — future elected leaders — and we expect them to take an oath to the Constitution, shouldn’t they know what that means?” Weiss said during the rally.
Robinson’s stance on education
As he has in previous speeches, Robinson talked about “certain subjects and certain things that have no place” in schools. Though he was not specific in this speech beyond DEI, in the past he has accused teachers of indoctrinating students to support LGBTQ+ people and previously was behind anti-Critical Race Theory legislation that would regulate how race is taught in schools.
Robinson is the first Black lieutenant governor and would be the state’s first Black governor if he wins this fall.
“Children are not supposed to be learning about adult topics. In our schools, they’re supposed to be taught to read and write and do mathematics,” Robinson said. “We are supposed to be teaching them about civics and real history and financial literacy and getting them career ready.”
Robinson, whose job as lieutenant governor is to preside over the Senate, did not go inside for the Senate session, nor did he take questions from reporters after speaking to the group and taking photos with them.
This story was originally published June 12, 2024 at 12:31 PM.
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