“More people are anxious about being filmed when we teach about controversial topics. We feel that we are moving on thin ice.” The words are from a chronicle by teachers at Oslo Cathedral School. There they wrote about being accused of racism, when they teach about racism. The chronicle started a debate about freedom of expression in schools. For this they receive the Fritt Ords Honnør award. – The teachers who today receive the Fritt Ords Honnør act as role models in education. They do this by reading and analyzing important texts, including those that hurt and address demanding themes such as racism and hatred, violence, sexism and historical abuse, says chairwoman of Stiftelsen Fritt Ord, Grete Brochmann. Grete Brochmann is chairman of Fritt Ord. Photo: Mette Ballovara / news Fritt Ord Honnør is a freedom of expression award. – They address the public through the chronicle and give us an insight into the dilemmas of teaching. They clearly show what they stand for, adds Brochmann. Previous award winners Here are the winners of Fritt Ords Honnør for the last ten years. 2023: Bjørn Olav Jahr 2023: Ella Marie Hætta Isaksen 2022: Lise Klaveness 2021: Utøya and Jørgen Watne Frydnes 2020: Sara Johnsen and Pål Sletaune 2019: Frank Nervik, Norun Haugen, Ola Waagen and Piraya Film 2019: Hans Fredrik Dahl 2019: Levi Fragell 2018: Simon Malkenes 2018: Odd Isungset 2017: Leo Ajkic and “the shameless girls” 2017: Kristin Clemet 2016: Loveleen Rihel Brenna and Walid al-Kubaisi 2015: Fredens Ring 2015: Flemming Rose and Vebjørn Selbekk “The fear of filming” Chronicle was a response to a post on the Instagram account Racism in Norway. The post read: “Disappointing to see that you, who are considered the best school in Oslo, contribute to more racism and xenophobia, by using a text in which dark-skinned people are characterized as “Negroes”, and this in 2024.”, it said. it on Instagram. Here is the post from Racism in Norway. Photo: Screenshot from Aftenposten In the Instagram story there was a video from a classroom where a short story was being read in which the n-word was used. Although the teachers wrote that the video was not from Oslo Cathedral School, they wrote that they knew the situation all too well. “The fear of being filmed and published while we teach about controversial topics is something that affects all teachers. Regardless of which school the film is taken from.” They pointed out that their pupils read poems about the racially motivated murder of Indian-born Arve Beheim Karlsen. In the poem, the n-word is used five times. “When the poem was read, students in all the classrooms reacted. Fortunately.”, wrote the teachers, adding: “We will train students to deal with a sometimes intolerable reality and history.” After the chronicle and a case in Aftenposten, Racism in Norway published a new post in which they admitted that the post was wrong, and that the whole case was due to a misunderstanding. Published 19.08.2024, at 08.00
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Teachers were accused of racism
