Youngkin Makes the GOP the Parents’ Party
November 3, 2021
Republican Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin’s come-from-behind victory was powered by parents. Concerns about what is being taught in Virginia’s schools—and how it is being taught—galvanized support for Mr. Youngkin. His success offers Republicans a road map to become the parents’ party.
Marie Mierzejewski, 40, entrusted her kids to the Albemarle County schools near Charlottesville because they had a reputation for excellence in “the basics, like reading, writing and arithmetic.” This spring, the county veered in a different direction with a new curriculum: “Courageous Conversations About Race.” Drawing heavily on the ideas of Ibram X. Kendi, author of “How to Be an Antiracist,” and peppered with words like “cisgender,” “white privilege,” and “non-Christian folx [sic],” the lessons encouraged children to view themselves through the prisms of race, gender, sexuality and class.
