In 2024, the proposed revisions to Maine’s science standards, which included teaching about genocide, eugenics, and the Holocaust, were rejected by both the House of Representatives on March 28 and the Senate on April 1. The rejection came after the unanimous recommendation of the House Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs on March 7 to reject the proposed changes.
The revisions suggested changes to middle school standards related to evolution and heredity, claiming that misinterpretations of fossil observations and ideas of natural selection led to false beliefs about human hierarchies and racial inequality. These misconceptions were said to have contributed to atrocities such as the Holocaust, Rwandan genocide, and mistreatment of indigenous people in Maine. However, a spokesperson for the Maine Department of Education explained in December 2023 that a new law mandated the incorporation of African American studies, Maine Native American history, and genocide in instruction but did not specify which subjects or grades these topics should be taught in.
Various groups and individuals raised concerns about the proposed revisions, including the Maine Science Teachers Association and academics like Alison Riley Miller of Bowdoin College and Joseph L. Graves Jr., a member of NCSE’s board of directors. These critics suggested that civics and social studies programs may be more suitable for teaching content related to genocide, eugenics, and human rights violations. During its meeting on March 7th, 2024th
