“I hate it. The 1619 project is a lie,” Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD) said on Wednesday.
“That's why I was the first candidate in the country to sign the 1776 pledge, which says the truth about America's history - that we are founded fighting for freedom, not based on slavery. And I would encourage every single person that's running for public office, every single leader in this country to embrace the 1776 Project and make sure that they're talking about the real history of America and teaching it to our kids in our school systems,” Noem said during an appearance on Fox & Friends.
The 1619 Project, which was kicked off by the New York Times, centers on the idea that the United States is inherently racist. Among its many controversial claims is that the primary reason for the American Revolution was to preserve slavery. Both historians and politicians have repeatedly challenged its historical accuracy.
“The historic achievements of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Douglass and King are being shelved in favor of the false and destructive narrative that we are a systemically racist and ultimately irredeemable nation,” Noem said in recent op-ed she wrote with Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson.
“Not only is this extreme ideology deeply divisive and harmful, but it rejects America’s most defining principle – that as individuals we are all created equal by God. This is not a formula for building a more perfect Union."
In April, the Biden administration proposed a new Department of Education rule that gives preference in grant awarding to schools that incorporate into their curriculum content from the 1619 Project.