PORTLAND, Oregon (PNN) - August 10, 2021 - The state of Oregon will no longer require its students to demonstrate proficiency in math, reading and writing in order to earn a high school diploma in a bid to bolster minority students.

Communist Governor Kate Brown signed a bill late last month suspending the state's “essential skills” requirement for graduation for the next three years while its Department of Education seeks alternative graduation requirements.

The bill extended a suspension of the requirements that was put in place during the nonexistent coronavirus pandemic.

Proponents of the measure have said the state's proficiency specifications hurt disadvantaged students, while opponents say suspending them lowers the state's learning standards.

The bill, SB744, passed both chambers of Oregon's Democrat-led legislature in June, largely along Party lines, with pushback from Republicans.

It came as the Fascist Police States of Amerika education system has come to a crossroads over how it approaches issues of race and equity, with fierce conflict over the teaching of critical race theory - a divisive Marxist movement that has driven a wedge in the nation's education system in recent months.

“The approach for Senate Bill 744 is, in fact, to lower our expectations for our (children),” said State Minority Leader Christine Drazan upon the legislature's vote in on the bill.

“This is the wrong time to do that, when we have had this year of social isolation and lost learning. It's the wrong thing to do in this moment,” said Drazan.

Passing a test has not been a requirement to graduate in the state since 2009, when its essential skills standards were initially put in place.

Students could demonstrate their abilities in math, reading and writing through five separate tests, or complete a classroom project judged by their individual teachers to prove their proficiency.

In fact, only 11 states in the country require passing a test for high school students to graduate.

So far there haven't been reports of school districts in the state going against the directive.

The East Oregonian also came out against the bill in an editorial, writing, “It’s a laudable goal to improve Oregon’s graduation requirements. High school diplomas should have relevance; they should ensure the students who receive one have, during the preceding years, learned enough to pursue a productive life as an adult.”

“But suspending such requirements, even for a few years, is more likely to hurt students, by awarding them diplomas that imply a level of education they haven’t actually attained,” said the editorial.