The Ayn Rand School for Tots

Recently, Geoff Esposito, a lobbyist for the Arizona ACLU, testified before the Arizona Legislature. He explained that while not a fan of Ayn Rand, he would not support a bill to remove her novels, “Atlas Shrugged” or “The Fountainhead,” from a school library.

I wholeheartedly agree with him. Ayn Rand isn’t my cup of tea either, and while I am more sympathetic than Esposito to individualistic points of view, I would not support any effort to remove her works from school libraries. Objectivism in elementary schools, however, does make for an illuminating thought experiment: What if the ideological shoe were on the other foot?

If progressive parents want to gain insight into why parents are toting pitchforks and torches, I suggest they stretch their powers of imagination and picture themselves as a parent of an elementary student attending a district school.

One day you purchase something, and your child asks you to explain the concept of a sales tax. You explain what the tax is and what the government does with the money, but you are surprised you’re your child reacts with disgust.

Only a completely unfettered system of laissez-faire capitalism allows the full realization of the heroic individual, she explains in a lecturing tone. You have no idea what she is talking about, so you try to put it out of your mind.

Later, you give a couple of dollars to a beggar on the street. Your child erupts in disgust, screaming that altruism is evil. You know that your child isn’t getting this at home; digging into it, you suspect that this point of view is being pushed at school. The discovery of a book in your child’s backpack called “Rational Egoism for Tykes” confirms your suspicion.

Now imagine a national teacher union doubling down on teaching objectivism to elementary students and your school board smugly dismissing your concerns as a parent. If this were the scenario, we just might see progressive parents leading the charge for misguided policies: school library purges, curriculum mandates, etc.

They might even launch doomed efforts to take over the nation’s school boards. None of this would end well.

Ketanji Brown Jackson, in her recent Supreme Court confirmation hearing, was asked about the use of Critical Race Theory in a private school for which she serves on the governing board. The Washington Post reported:

Jackson did not detail her work on the board during the hearing, but she issued a sweeping defense of her involvement in the school, saying that the school is a private institution and that any parent who enrolls a child there does so willingly.

Bravissimo! The problem is not objectivism in schools per se in the thought experiment above. The problem would be in imposing objectivism.

In the absence of choice, battles over school curriculum will go on without ceasing.