New York City schools take Orwellian concept to its ‘logical’ conclusion

“Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it.”

        — George Orwell, “1984”

Same concept. Different objective.

In a request for proposals to provide the New York City Department of Education standardized tests in English, math science and social-studies, the agency listed 50 words or topics that may not be used lest the words “evoke unpleasant emotions in the students.”

This Gary Larson cartoon would be banned in New York City public schools.

A world without thoughtcrime or a world without unpleasant emotions uses the same technique: Eliminate words and you eliminate the very thing.

The New York Post called it “a bizarre case of political correctness run wild.”

The list includes the word “birthday” because some religions don’t celebrate birthdays. Of course, the word “religion” or any reference to religion is banned. So are references to disease, divorce, terrorism, slavery, smoking, illegal drugs, hunting, war, violence, politics, homelessness and joblessness.

It also bans mentioning wealth or poverty. If there is no word for poverty, there is no poverty.

On the other hand, no word for politics does have a certain appeal in this election year.

The word dinosaur is forbidden because that raises the issue of evolution.

The Post quoted one educrat as saying, “The intent is to avoid giving offense or disadvantage any test takers by privileging prior knowledge.”

You’d not expect the ghetto dweller to know the difference between port and starboard, since they’ve never been on a yacht.

The good news is, at least for the moment, the practice reading proficiency test Nevada gives to high school students to qualify for a diploma is full of non-politically correct questions.

One paragraph in one reading passage, punches several emotional hot buttons, “‘Wanted: Daring young men, preferably orphans,’ read the newspaper advertisement. Fifteen-year-old William F. Cody applied for the job. He knew that this would be no ordinary way to earn an honest wage. It would be filled with danger, excitement, little rest, and most likely a fair number of saddle sores. Yet it offered Cody and more than 200 others a rare opportunity to earn a lot of money in a very short time.”

Other readings refer to cancer and death and loneliness.

Another passage claimed that “breathing air in the Los Angeles Basin is equivalent to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.”

Here, according to the Post, is the full list of topics that if included on city exams would “probably cause a selection to be deemed unacceptable by the New York City Department of Education”:

Abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological)

Alcohol (beer and liquor), tobacco, or drugs

Birthdays

Bodily functions

Cancer (and other diseases)

Catastrophes/disasters (tsunamis and hurricanes)

Celebrities

Children dealing with serious issues

Cigarettes (and other smoking paraphernalia)

Computers in the home (acceptable in a school or public library setting)

Crime

Creatures from outer space

Dancing (ballet is acceptable)

Death and disease

Dinosaurs and prehistoric times

Divorce

Evolution

Expensive gifts, vacations, and prizes

Gambling involving money

Geological history

Halloween

Homelessness

Holidays

Homes with swimming pools

Hunting

In-depth discussions of sports that require prior knowledge

Junk food

Loss of employment

Movies

Nuclear weapons

Occult topics (i.e. fortune-telling)

Parapsychology

Politics

Pornography

Poverty

Rap music

Religion

Religious holidays and festivals (including but not limited to Christmas, Yom Kippur, and Ramadan)

Rock-and-Roll music

Running away

Sex

Slavery

Terrorism

Television and video games (excessive use)

Traumatic material (including material that may be particularly upsetting such as animal shelters)

Vermin (rats and roaches)

Violence

War and bloodshed

Weapons (guns, knives, etc.)

Witchcraft, sorcery, etc.

(Source: NYC Department of Education Request for Proposals)