What's happening
This bill requires New York schools to include instruction on the history of the Garifuna people in their curriculum.
Why it matters
Highlights the Garifuna people's history. as an important part of human rights education, placing it alongside major topics like genocide, slavery, and the Holocaust, which elevates its significance within the curriculum and encourages broader recognition of this community.
Mandates both public and private schools. to teach about the Garifuna people, meaning all students over age eight in New York will be exposed to this content, potentially increasing awareness and combating ignorance or prejudice about Afro-Indigenous and Caribbean histories.
Empowers the Board of Regents and Commissioner of Education. with the authority to enforce and supervise this instruction, including the ability to withhold school funding for non-compliance, making this requirement more likely to be meaningfully implemented rather than ignored.
Signals a broader approach to multicultural education. by expanding the list of required historical topics, reflecting changing demographics and a growing recognition of New York’s diverse communities and their contributions.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Teach Garifuna History in Schools
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to education
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Teach Garifuna History in Schools
Stricken · Sponsor Luis R. Sepúlveda
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
4925
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 3, 2017
Introduced by Sen. DIAZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to instruction on the Garifuna people
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 801 of the education law, as amended by chapter 574 of the laws of 1997, are amended to read as follows:
1. In order to promote a spirit of patriotic and civic service and obligation and to foster in the children of the state moral and intellectual qualities which are essential in preparing to meet the obligations of citizenship in peace or in war, the regents of The University of the State of New York shall prescribe courses of instruction in patriotism, citizenship, and human rights issues, with particular attention to the study of the inhumanity of genocide, slavery (including the freedom trail and underground railroad), the Holocaust, the history of the Garifuna people, and the mass starvation in Ireland from 1845 to 1850, to be maintained and followed in all the schools of the state. The boards of education and trustees of the several cities and school districts of the state shall require instruction to be given in such courses, by the teachers employed in the schools therein. All pupils attending such schools, over the age of eight years, shall attend upon such instruction.
Similar courses of instruction shall be prescribed and maintained in private schools in the state, and all pupils in such schools over eight years of age shall attend upon such courses. If such courses are not so established and maintained in a private school, attendance upon instruction in such school shall not be deemed substantially equivalent to instruction given to pupils of like age in the public schools of the city or district in which such pupils reside.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07372-01-7
S. 4925 2
3. The regents shall determine the subjects to be included in such courses of instruction in patriotism, citizenship, and human rights issues, with particular attention to the study of the inhumanity of genocide, slavery (including the freedom trail and underground railroad), the Holocaust, the history of the Garifuna people, and the mass starvation in Ireland from 1845 to 1850, and in the history, meaning, significance and effect of the provisions of the constitution of the United States, the amendments thereto, the declaration of independence, the constitution of the state of New York and the amendments thereto, and the period of instruction in each of the grades in such subjects. They shall adopt rules providing for attendance upon such instruction and for such other matters as are required for carrying into effect the objects and purposes of this section. The commissioner shall be responsible for the enforcement of such section and shall cause to be inspected and supervise the instruction to be given in such subjects. The commissioner may, in his discretion, cause all or a portion of the public school money to be apportioned to a district or city to be withheld for failure of the school authorities of such district or city to provide instruction in such courses and to compel attendance upon such instruction, as herein prescribed, and for a non-compliance with the rules of the regents adopted as herein provided.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the education law, in relation to instruction on the Garifuna people
Purpose or general idea of bill
This purpose of this bill is to increase awareness and cultural competency throughout the New York State community by making that Garifuna people a mandatory part of our education curriculum.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1. Calls upon the regents of the university of the State of New York to include the "the history of the Garifuna People" to a previously established list of pedagogically important historical topics. This section also ensures that there rules regarding attendance during the instruction of this added materials, enforced by the commissioner.
Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Justification
The Garifuna are an ethnic group of mixed ancestry - descendants of Carib, Arawak and African people living along the Caribbean Coast in Belize, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. A seafaring people, they arrived in the United States as merchant marines during World War II. Today, New York City is home to the largest Garifuna population outside of Central America with an estimated 200,000 living in the South Bronx, Brownsville and East New York in Brooklyn, and Harlem.
This part of our population represents the growing Afro-Latino representation within New York State. With the growing representation it is important to make sure that the New York State community is attuned to interacting and understanding the histories of our neighbors. Garifuna history is not just Central American history but also New York history. Adding the history of the Garifuna people to our educational curriculum contributes to the bridging of cultural and historical blind spots in our understanding of how New York became what it is today.
The inclusion of the history of Garifuna people is not unprecedented since New York State educates our students on other immigrant histories such as: the Holocaust, mass starvation of Ireland from 1845 to 1850 and various other human rights issues related to genocide. The inclusion of Garifuna history will educate a better New York workforce that would have an understanding of not solely domestic and European history, but also Latin American and Afro-diasporic.
Prior legislative history
2016: S.7175- REFERRED TO EDUCATION/A.9791-referred to education
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the 1rst of next July.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.