Chapter 070
2011 -- H 5732 SUBSTITUTE A
Enacted 06/15/11
A N A C T
RELATING TO EDUCATION
Introduced
By: Representatives Williams,
Date Introduced: March 03, 2011
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled
"EDUCATION" is hereby amended
by adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER
93
GENOCIDE
EDUCATION IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS
16-93-1.
Legislative findings. -- The general assembly
hereby finds and declares that:
(1) On November 4,
1988 the
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide ("Genocide
Convention") which was
approved by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. Upon
ratification, the
genocide has inflicted great losses on humanity, and was
convinced that, in order to liberate
mankind from such an odious scourge, international
co-operation was required.
(2) The
twenty-first (21st) century. The
"Declaring genocide in
States Secretary of State Colin L. Powell told the
United States Senate Foreign Relations
Committee that "genocide has
occurred and may still be occurring in
President George W. Bush affirmed the Secretary of
State's finding on September 21, 2004, when
he addressed the United Nations General Assembly by
saying: "At this hour, the world is
witnessing terrible suffering and horrible crimes in the Darfur
region of
government has concluded are genocide."
(3) The United States
Department of Education says "education is primarily a State and
local responsibility in the
private organizations of all kinds that establish schools and
college and develop curricula…"
(4) The State of
regarding raising awareness on subject of genocide.
(i)
In 2000, the
human rights education," requiring the
curricular material on genocide and human rights issues and
guidelines for the teaching of that
material."
(ii)
In 2007, the Rhode Island general assembly passed house bill No. 5142,
requiring the
state investment commission to divest its assets from
targeted companies in
(5) The establishment
of free public education in the
citizens for participation in American social, economic, and
political activities.
(6) The State of
education, of which genocide education should be a component.
In 2005, the general assembly
directed the board of regents for elementary and secondary
education to develop and adopt a set
of grade level standards in civic education by August
31, 2007.
(7) Given the
importance of the issue of genocide to the political affairs of the United
States, as well as the responsibility of the state to
educate its citizens, it is a fundamental
responsibility of the State of
included as part of the curriculum in all public schools.
(8) It is the
judgment of the
of education in the state shall include instruction on
the subject of genocide in an appropriate
place in the curriculum, for all middle and high school
students.
16-93-2.
Definitions. -- For the purpose of this
chapter, the following words shall have
the following meanings:
(1)
"Genocide," as defined by the Genocide Convention: "means"
any of the following
acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in
part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious
group, such as: (i) Killing
members of the group; (ii) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to
members of the group; (iii) Deliberately inflicting on the
group conditions of life calculated to
bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(iv) Imposing measures intended to
prevent births within the group and/or; (v) Forcibly
transferring children of the group to another
group.
16-93-3.
Powers and duties. -- The state shall adhere to
the following procedures:
(1) The department of
education shall make available on its website curriculum materials
and such other materials as may assist local and regional
school committees in developing
instructional programs pursuant to this section. The curriculum
materials may include information
on relevant genocides, including the Holocaust,
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
=======
LC01938/SUB A
=======