Ryan Walters

Ryan Walters is an American politician and "educator" currently serving as Oklahoma's State School Superintendent since 2023. Before that, he served as Oklahoma's Secretary of Education for three years, from 2020 to 2023.
Walters is arguably one of the worst things to ever happen to Oklahoma, and given the litany of godawful politicians that Oklahoma has produced, that is really saying something. A dyed-in-the-wool conservative Christian, Walters has been described as Oklahoma's "top culture warrior"How Oklahoma’s schools superintendent became the state’s top culture warrior by Tyler Kingkade (Aug. 23, 2023, 6:01 AM PDT), NBC News due to his raging homophobia and transphobia and his opposition to critical race theory, among other things. His anti-LGBT rhetoric and policies led to the death of non-binary high school student Nex Benedict, following severe head injuries from a group of girls at Owasso High School on February 7, 2024.Nex Benedict: Non-binary student who died after Oklahoma bathroom assault was a ‘shining light’ by Bevan Hurley (February 21, 2024), The Independent
==Early career and Secretary of Education==
Walters had the benefit of being buddies with current Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt a few years before he was elected to office (like Stitt, Walters is the son of a pastor.) 
Prior to officially joining Stitt's administration, Walters was a U.S. History teacher at McAlester High School, and later became the executive director and CEO of Every Kid Counts Oklahoma (formerly known as Oklahoma Achieves), a non-profit education advocacy group whose donors include national school privatization and charter school advocates, including the Walton Family Foundation, the primary charitable outlet of the heirs to Walmart founder Sam Walton, and an education group founded by Charles Koch.Ryan Walters Steps Down From Nonprofit Role That Drew Scrutiny by Reese Gorman, Clifton Adcock and Jennifer Palmer (January 8, 2023), Oklahoma Watch. He retained this position while serving as Secretary of Education and stepped down from this position shortly before being inaugurated as state superintendent.
==Becoming state superintendent==
After getting the stamp of approval from both Stitt and Ted Cruz,Ted Cruz endorses Ryan Walters: 'Ryan is a tireless advocate for students' by Kevin Severin (June 10th, 2022), OKC Fox 25 Walters beat out four other GOP candidates in the primaries to earn the Republican nomination for State Superintendent,Ryan Walters wins GOP nomination for Oklahoma state schools superintendent over April Grace by Nuria Martinez-Keel (August 23, 2022), The Oklahoman going on to defeat the Democratic Party's nominee, Jena Nelson, in the general election,Ryan Walters wins high-profile race for state superintendent, by Andrea Eger, Tulsa World. thus plunging Oklahoma into a what can only be described as a disaster at best and a nightmare at worst.
===Critical race theory===
As stated above, Walters has pushed back on idea of critical race theory being taught in Oklahoma public schools, though there's no evidence that it ever was.FAQ: What we know about teaching since Oklahoma’s so-called critical race theory ban went into effect by Robby Korth (September 8, 2022 | 6:00 am) State Impact Oklahoma, NPR. In an op-ed he wrote for The Hill in 2023, he described CRT as "racist" and "anti-American", and that it "poisons young minds."Teach truth, not racism, to the next generation of Americans by Ryan Walters (July 31, 2023), The Hill.
In a spectacular display of denialism at a town hall in July 2023, he stated that the Tulsa Race Massacre "shouldn't be tied to skin color".Hear and read Ryan Walters’ full remarks about the Tulsa Race Massacre by Brianna Bailey (July 7, 2023), The Frontier.
===PragerU===
In September 2023, Walters announced that the Oklahoma Department of Education would be partnering with PragerU to produce curriculum content for Oklahoma schools, following Florida in that regard.Oklahoma follows Florida in allowing PragerU in schools by Lexi Lonas (September 5, 2023), The Hill 
The idea of PragerU influencing education policy on the state level is actually quite terrifying. Thankfully, quite a few schools have openly stated that they won't be using any PragerU curricula any time soon.Oklahoma schools decline to use controversial PragerU curriculum despite endorsement from Supt. Walters by Payton May, MSN
===Other positions===
*Walters believes that the U.S. Department of Education should be eliminated, as stated at a Moms for Liberty (listed as an extremist group by the Southern Poverty Law Center) summit that also included Nikki Haley in Philadelphia in June 2023.‘I’m proud to be fighting alongside them’: OK Supt. Walters to speak at Moms For Liberty conference by Kaylee Douglas (Jun 29, 2023), KFOR He's also against teachers' unions.
*He is anti-abortion.Ryan Walters, Ballotpedia 
*He is a self-described "staunch supporter of the Second Amendment" and is a supporter of the NRA propaganda of "good guy with a gun".Debunking the ‘Guns Make Us Safer’ Myth: Despite arguments from the gun lobby and its allies, guns used for self-defense are not common, beneficial for society, or efficient in deterring mass shootings or criminal victimization. The Center for American Progress.
*He is against "illegal immigration" and has voiced support for former president Donald Trump's border wall.
*He supports displaying the Ten Commandments in every classroom.Ryan Walters calls for Ten Commandments in every classroom, promotion of 'Western culture' by Ben Felder (June 23, 2023), The Oklahoman.
*He hates atheists.Ryan Walters Takes Holy Aim at ‘Radical Atheists’ by Patrick Ogle (November 29, 2023), The Lost Ogle.
===The death of Nex Benedict===
Among Walters' anti-LGBT policies is preventing students from changing the designation of their gender or sex in school records.Nex Benedict’s death shines spotlight on Oklahoma schools by Lexi Lonas (February 26, 2024), The Hill.
Easily the worst thing that Walters has done so far has been to appoint Chaya Raichik — better known as the woman behind the Libs of TikTok Twitter account — to a statewide library advisory board.State Supt. Ryan Walters appoints woman behind ‘Libs of TikTok’ to OSDE’s Library Media Advisory Committee by FOX23 News Staff (January 23, 2024), FOX23 News. Raichik's posts on Twitter, often consist of transphobic propaganda and edited videos targeting school teachers and librarians, have been directly linked to transphobic and homophobic threats, violence, and attempted terrorist attacks. Incidents include bomb threats against a school in Wisconsin, a near-riot at Idaho Pride, and threats against a Jewish summer camp.Elad Nehorai, "Libs of TikTok is fueling a pogrom against trans youth", Forward, 29 August 2022 
Walters' decision resulted in protests from Democrats and Republicans alike, as well as from a number of parents, educators, and lawmakers who believe Raichik endangered students and teachers.Libs of TikTok Fueled Bomb Threats at Oklahoma Schools. The Superintendent Just Hired Her by Nikki McCann Ramirez (January 23, 2024), Yahoo News
Nex Benedict was a 16-year-old non-binary student who was a sophomore at Owasso High School and had been enduring bullying from their peers at school due to their gender identity. On February 7, 2024, six students entered a girl's bathroom, and, according to Nex, "jumped" them to the point where Nex lost consciousness.Owasso police release bodycam footage of Nex Benedict interview: ‘I got jumped’ by Oklahoman Staff (February 23, 2024), The Oklahoman.
The following day, Nex collapsed at home while preparing for an appointment. Nex's mother, Sue Benedict, called 911 and said that Nex's eyes had rolled back and they were struggling to breathe. Nex had stopped breathing by the time emergency medical technicians arrived, and was declared dead at the hospital that evening.Oklahoma banned trans students from bathrooms. Now Nex Benedict is dead after a fight at school by Bevan Hurley (February 20, 2024), The Independent.
Walters and Raichik have rightfully been blamed for the death of Nex Benedict, as the anti-LGBT rhetoric pushed by both of them opened the door for Nex to be targeted. In response, Walters showed everyone just how much of an asshole he is by having the gall to defend Oklahoma's anti-LGBT policies in a February 23 interview with The New York Times, regarding Benedict's death, saying: "There's not multiple genders. There's two. That's how God created us." Walters also said, "I think it's terrible that we've had some radical leftists who decided to run with a political agenda and try to weave a narrative that hasn't been true" and "You've taken a tragedy, and you've had some folks try to exploit it for political gain."Oklahoma education chief claims Nex Benedict’s death being ‘exploited’ by ‘radical leftists’ by Chantelle Billson (February 24, 2024), PinkNews.After Nex Benedict's death, Oklahoma's Ryan Walters: Just two genders, as God intended by Trudy Ring (February 23, 2024), The Advocate.
==References==
Category:Alt-lite
Category:Anti-abortion activists
Category:Anti-LGBT bigots
Category:Atheophobia
Category:Christians
Category:Culture wars
Category:Denialists
Category:Educators
Category:Far-right politics
Category:Gun nuts
Category:Homophobes
Category:Kochsphere
Category:Racists
Category:Right-wing activists
Category:Transphobes