Nation’s leading early childhood development organization tells educators to ‘use principles of critical race theory’ when working with babies
LGBT-themed books at a California elementary school / Getty Images
Patrick Hauf • September 21, 2022 4:58 am
The nation’s leading early childhood development organization, which has received more than $230 million in federal funding since 2008, claims children as young as two can show signs of “transgender identity” and encourages educators to ” to use the principles of Critical Race Theory”. when working with newborns.
The group, Zero to Three, promoted these controversial views during its virtual conference this month, which included educational sessions titled “What does it mean to be transgender and how can you support children who might be?” and “Racial Equity in the First 1,000 Days: Protecting, Promoting, and Preserving the Health, Wealth, and Learning of Our Families and Babies.”
“This [presentation] addresses gender identity development, including how early the process begins (ages 2-3) and how parents and professionals can distinguish gender exploration with the emergence of a transgender identity,” a session description reads.
Zero to Three, which has 3,653 members working in the field of early childhood development, has received $234.68 million in funding from the Department of Health and Human Services since 2008 and is slated to receive an additional $52 million by in 2027, including $4.2 million. the grant from the Biden administration will begin this month. The group trained 89,222 professionals last year, according to its 2021 impact report.
HHS did not respond to a request for comment.
Public and private schools have adopted controversial left-wing curricula on gender and race in recent years, but Zero to Three’s advocacy on these issues represents one of the most high-profile efforts to promote these radical views in development. of early childhood. Parents often hire educators to help develop their child as they prepare for middle school—a process that requires child specialists to “consider the role of race and identity” and view gender as a “social construct” since ” prenatal period onwards”. according to training sessions of Zero to Three.
While Zero to Three says it is nonpartisan, it boasts strong ties to the Democratic Party. The nonprofit, which has spent $1.92 million on lobbying since 2018, has exclusively backed legislation backed by Democrats in the past year, including President Joe Biden’s “Build Back Better” plan. The group is also supported by Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker’s (Ill.) foundation, the Pritzker Children’s Initiative, according to the group’s financial disclosures.
John King, former secretary of education for the Obama administration, delivered the keynote address for the September conference, in which he commented on the “critical need to address issues of equity” in early childhood education.
“Because when you think about it, educational equity is educational justice for our babies who are the most underserved,” King said.
Before the King’s speech, the conference hosted a “Drag Virtual Bingo” for her “happy hour fun.”
Inspired by Monday’s sessions, here’s what’s most important to Conference attendees! A focus on authentic relationships, constantly learning and practicing with an anti-racist lens. #LEARNING pic.twitter.com/I3Ud9TWChk
— ZERO IN TREE (@ZEROTOTHREE) September 14, 2022
Zero in Three did not respond to a request for comment.
Zero to Three relies mostly on government grants. The group’s latest tax form shows it raised $38 million in 2019 — $21 million of which came from the government. of Free Washington Beacon reported last year that liberal advocacy groups that fund radical sex education curricula for grades as young as kindergarten, including the United States Council on Sexuality Information and Education and Advocates for Youth, are also funded by HHS.
In addition to HHS, Zero to Three received $1.95 million from the Department of Justice during the Obama administration. The Department of Defense, through the Army, had two contracts with the group for nearly $10,000. CDC and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, meanwhile, sponsored the group’s 2021 conference.
The Department of Justice, the Department of the Army and the CDC did not respond to requests for comment.
Zero to Three will host another in-person conference in December.
“Join us to discover strategies for connecting with families through courageous conversations—from typical developmental issues like challenging behaviors to more sensitive topics like racism, domestic violence, gender identity, or issues related to immigration,” it says in the conference description.
