WASHINGTON — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is calling for Virginians to exercise more tolerance.
He spoke following an appearance on WTOP Wednesday morning.
His comments come after a teacher in Augusta County had security assigned to her following a calligraphy lesson in her world geography class that involved students writing in Arabic.
Classes and school events were canceled in Augusta County Friday, Dec. 18 after the Riverheads High School teacher and the county school system received strong backlash from concerned parents, particularly on social media.
After his interview on WTOP, McAuliffe told reporters he did not agree with school administrators’ decision to cancel class and he has talked with the teacher.
“She’s a strong woman,” McAuliffe said.
The lesson in question was for the students to practice calligraphy. The teacher had her class copy the Muslim statement of faith which translates to: “There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
“You want children to have a broad-based education. To be taught different religions and languages, that’s all part of the experience of what we need here in America to be open and welcoming to everybody. It’s just unfortunate people overreact,” McAuliffe said.
The governor said the acceptance of others was specifically what the Founding Fathers, including former Virginia governor and President Thomas Jefferson, had in mind when drafting the Bill of Rights.
“Why is it now, hundreds of years later, we’re turning our backs on these folks?” said McAuliffe.
“I think we need to elevate the debate.”
