Tennessee governor says American exceptionalism will be ‘unapologetically’ taught in schools

One anti-masker yelled that they “will find” the pro-mask parents

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee says “American exceptionalism” will be “unapologetically” taught in Tennessee schools. (screengrab)

Tennessee's Republican governor claimed that students in his state would be "unapologetically" taught American exceptionalism the day after a mob of parents threatened and harassed health experts and parents who advocated for students to wear masks in school.

"In TN, our students will be taught unapologetic American exceptionalism," Governor Bill Lee wrote on Twitter on Wednesday.

American exceptionalism is an ethnocentric school of thought that claims the US is inherently different from all other countries on the planet, suggesting that its history, values and political system are unique in human history.

The implication of the viewpoint is often that the US is destined to play a significant, and positive, role in the world. Critical views of the US, like its imperialist intervention in other countries and its history of racism and genocide, are generally downplayed.

Ironically, the term that the Republican governor embraces was first used as a criticism of the US by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.

"By prioritizing civics education in TN schools, we are raising a generation of young people who are knowledgeable in American history and confident in navigating their civic responsibilities," Mr Lee wrote on Twitter.

The governor's proclamation comes at a time when Tennessee schools are grappling with the coming academic year and the risk that the Delta variant of the coronavirus poses to its students.

On Monday, a mob of parents gathered outside the Williamson County School Board meeting in Franklin, Tennessee to protest parents – including doctors and nurses – who were advocating for the enforcement of student masking in the coming school year.

Video captured the moment the pro-masking parents left the school board meeting. As the parents left, anti-mask protesters screamed at and heckled them, with one shouting that they "know who you are”.

"You can leave freely, but we will find you," the man threatened.

Mr Lee has a somewhat more progressive view on school mask mandates than his Republican colleagues in states like Florida and Texas, where they have been outright banned by executive order.

On Tuesday, the governor said that schools have the right to set mask mandates, at least for now. He said he was not prepared to support legislation prohibiting schools from enforcing masks on students.

Coronavirus cases have spiked in Tennessee, with a 78 per cent increase in cases per 100,000 people for the week ending 6 August when compared to the previous week. The state averaged 276 cases per 100,000 people, with hospitalisations and deaths jumping by 65 per cent and 24 per cent, per a White House report.

The state is the ninth worst for vaccinations in the country, with only 40 per cent of adults fully vaccinated. The national average for vaccinations is 50 per cent.

Despite the vocal minority of anti-mask parents who receive media attention, a recent poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that most parents agreed that students and unvaccinated staff should wear masks when schools resume in the fall.

The poll found that 63 per cent of parents agreed that masks should be required, opposed to 38 per cent who disagreed with mandates. The preference that students and unvaccinated staff wear masks held up across all racial and political lines with the exception of Republicans, who overwhelmingly opposed masking.

The CDC recommends that all students, teachers and staff wear masks when they return to the classroom to help mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. In the mean time, the American Academy of Pediatrics has also called on the US Food and Drug Administration to fast-track an emergency approval of the coronavirus vaccines for children under 12, claiming the benefits of the shots outweigh the risks they may pose.

The AAP noted that coronavirus cases in children increased 85 per cent for the week ending 29 July, and noted that perfectly health children are among those who are being hospitalised due to Covid-19.