Bartlett High Under Fire Over Offensive 9/11 Post

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From the Principal Toyota Studios, it's Morning in Memphis with Todd Starnes.

Todd Starnes (0:08)

And good morning, everybody, and hope you are ready for a very busy Friday. A lot of news happening across the Mid-South, and we're gonna get to all of it. And of course, today marks the 25th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. That is the day that Muslim terrorists waged jihad on American soil, something that your kids are not learning in their local public schools. We're gonna get to all of that today, but a number of services and memorials are happening across the Mid-South. And the most poignant one is expected to happen later today, later this morning, in just about 90 minutes at the Firefighters Museum in downtown Memphis. They're expecting hundreds of people to come out for that memorial service. It starts at 830 So if you're anywhere near the downtown area, or if you want to drive out to downtown to be a part of that 25th anniversary commemoration, I would encourage you to do that. Commander Chuck will have your report on the roadways here momentarily. Also, we're gonna be taking your calls. Do you remember what you were doing? Where were you during the 9-11 terrorist attacks? Our telephone number this morning, 901-260-5926.

That's 901-260-5926.

And we're gonna be taking your calls this morning here on the morning show, here in the principal Toyota Memphis studio. Now, there was a lot of political news happening. Of course, last night, the final night of the Republican National Convention, the midterm convention, and I'm just gonna tell you, it was a pretty powerful experience. Two nights of powerful speeches, great messages, an enthusiastic crowd. People are fired up. But here's the problem. Not many people were actually watching on their TV. So the question is, will this actually make a difference?

Will this motivate people to get out and vote on election day? And that's the big unknown, because again, there were so many other things competing for eyeballs over the past couple of nights, including two big NFL games, that most people were not watching. The rating numbers, ratings numbers coming out, and it was just not a good time to hold this convention. Nevertheless, there was still a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of excitement. Now, I want to get to a story locally here that's causing quite a bit of controversy, and this actually involves Bartlett High School. Now, there have been a number of schools around the nation that are teaching a skewed version or a whitewashed version of what happened on 9-11. As a matter of fact, in Fairfax County, Virginia, teachers were actually given instruction not to mention anything about Islam, not anything about Muslims during 9-11.

As a matter of fact, they were told specifically, do not assume students' feelings, ignore statements rooted in bias, hate, and racism, center the extremist or the acts of the extremist, and create an emotionally, do not create an emotionally stressful learning environment for any student.

So what Fairfax County is trying to do, and keep in mind, 25 years, so anybody who is, let's say, under the age of 30 really has no true concept of what happened on that day. They cannot relive the horrors of that day that all of us went through. Memphis International became one of those places where travelers were stranded, and it was just really a shocking moment for all of us. And I think every person, every adult and teenager in this country at that time, knew exactly what they were doing the moment they heard about the terrorist attacks. And people just had no idea. We had no idea what was coming next. None whatsoever. And it was a scary time for this country. So 25 years later, now a Muslim, a Ugandan national, is the mayor of New York City. The entire city has been overrun by foreign nationals. And the families of the 9-11 victims are so enraged that Mayor Mamdami is going to be at the event today. And not because he is a Muslim, but because he has associated himself with radical Islamists, some of whom have actually defended the 9-11 terrorist attacks. As a matter of fact, Hassan Piker, a close ally of the mayor, actually said that America deserved 9-11. And so that's why...

And so the schools are not telling this story. And so that's why this is important. What just happened at Bartlett High School is a great example of that. So yesterday, someone at Bartlett High School posted on the official page, and we have to imagine it was some sort of a school administrator, but regardless, a Bartlett High School person, whoever that person was, posted something that was just absolutely bizarre. Instead of noting a commemoration, they were going to make today a celebration. They called it Happy Fourth of July. And I'm just going to read to you what they were planning to do at Bartlett High School today. Join us as Bartlett High School celebrates Independence Day, Recognition Day. What does that mean? They go on to say, on September 11th, students will take part in activities focused on the history, meaning, and impact of Independence Day and the birth of our nation. To help celebrate, we invite all students and staff to wear red, white, and blue as we recognize the freedoms and opportunities that have shaped our country. Let's learn, reflect, and celebrate together.