House Overwhelmingly Passes ‘Crucial Communism Teaching Act’

The U.S. Capitol building in Washington on Nov. 19, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

WASHINGTON—The House on Dec. 6 passed the Crucial Communism Teaching Act with a vote of 327–62. The bill, introduced by Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) and cosponsored by 33 members of the House, seeks to address a gap in the education system related to the history of communism.

“Communism is one of the most destructive political ideologies the world has ever seen,” Rep. Salazar said when reintroducing the bill earlier this year.

“The Crucial Communism Teaching Act is important because our youth must remember the crimes of the communists, including those inflicted upon my constituents and their families in Florida’s 27th district.”

She first introduced the bill in September 2021, but it was not brought up for a vote at that time.

Specifically, the bill seeks to educate American students that “communism has led to the deaths of over 100,000,000 victims worldwide,” and that “1,500,000,000 people still suffer under communism.”

Ahead of the vote, Rep. Danny Burgess (R-Fla.) warned that many youth have been taught to see communism as something desirable, noting that a recent report indicated “half of GenZ students were unaware that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is responsible for more deaths than Nazi Germany.”

He also said that more than a quarter of Generation Z students view communism favorably and that 20 percent think that it is a better system than capitalism.

The curriculum will be developed by the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, an entity created by a unanimous vote of Congress in 1993 under President Bill Clinton.

“American students deserve to know the truth: communism is not a promise for a more equitable future—it is a brutal ideology that runs counter to democracy and the very principles our nation was founded upon,” said Ken Pope, CEO of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

The legislation mandates that the new educational program will discuss “certain political ideologies, including communism and totalitarianism, that conflict with the principles of freedom and democracy that are essential to the founding of the United States.”

It also makes space for an oral historical series called “Portraits in Patriotism,” which will feature stories from survivors of communist regimes. The bill’s authors said they wanted the survivors to describe the contrast between life under those political systems and life in the United States.

During a floor debate ahead of its passage, Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) said the bill was “narrowly tailored” and did not address more important issues such as “achievement gaps” and affordable education.

Scott also said the bill “skirts around key historical lessons,” because it did not mention fascism directly, or teach about the House Un-American Activities Committee.

That initiative, associated with former Sen. Joseph McCarthy, sought to stamp out communism in the United States in the mid-20th century but has come to be viewed by many as too heavy-handed in its approach.