Lawmaker apologizes for Gestapo remark
The chair of the House Education Reform Committee is apologizing today for her use of the word "Gestapo" to criticize a teacher training proposal.
Officials with the statewide teachers union Education Minnesota said Tuesday they would support an alternative licensing program if participants were kept under close supervision for 90 days. Republican Representative Sondra Erickson of Princeton told Minnesota Public Radio News she thought that requirement sounded like the "teacher Gestapo." Erickson, who's a retired teacher, said a day later that her word choice was inappropriate.
"My apologies to everyone out there," Erickson said. " I love my profession. I think the world of teachers. I guess I just have a little problem with the unions demands, and we'll work that out."
The head of the Minnesota AFL-CIO and many educators were publicly demanding the apology. Erickson's committee is scheduled to hear two alternative licensing bills on Thursday.
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