SD senators OK bill shielding public university students from ‘discomfort’

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota Senate committee has narrowly approved a proposal from Gov. Kristi Noem that would ban public universities from using training that compels people to feel “discomfort” based on their race. The Republican-controlled Senate Education committee endorsed the bill in a 4-3 vote for consideration by the full chamber. But several Republicans leveled criticism against it. The House has already passed the bill. The Republican governor has touted it as a ban on critical race theory. Critics say it would put a chill on academic freedom and sanitize the most painful facts of the country’s history.