Culture war in the classroom: Education as a political battlefield in Latin America

In the last decade, education has become a new front for political polarization in Latin America. Issues such as the inclusion of gender ideology , the approach to recent history, and how to teach human rights have turned school curricula into the scene of intense debates between governments, political parties, and civil society organizations.

What once seemed a purely pedagogical issue is now a key instrument for conservative and progressive groups seeking to shape society's vision from the classroom. In countries like Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, textbooks , civics programs, and diversity content have been the subject of campaigns demanding their modification or elimination.

In Mexico, controversy erupted in 2023 when the federal government introduced a new edition of free textbooks , which included topics on inclusion, sexual diversity, and criticism of the neoliberal economic model. Conservative sectors, parent associations, and opposition parties denounced the books as instruments of indoctrination and promoted "gender ideology."

Organizations such as the National Union of Parents filed injunctions to halt their distribution in several states. At the local level, opposition governors ordered the books not to be distributed or even removed from schools. Meanwhile, teachers' unions and progressive groups defended the content as a necessary update to reflect the country's social reality.

In Brazil , the Escola Sem Partido (School Without a Party) movement has been one of the main drivers of the so-called "culture war." It was founded in the mid-2000s to denounce alleged ideological indoctrination practices by teachers, especially on topics related to politics, gender, and sexuality.

During Jair Bolsonaro 's administration, the project received official support, promoting bills to ban all political demonstrations in classrooms and requiring teachers to remain "neutral." Although the bills did not advance at the federal level, they did influence local debates and generated an atmosphere of distrust toward educators.

In Argentina , discussions about how to teach recent history, especially the military dictatorship (1976-1983), have also become a source of political dispute. Conservative sectors argue that current content presents a biased view and fosters hatred toward the Armed Forces, while human rights advocates demand a critical perspective that highlights the violations committed during state terrorism.

In 2024, the change of government in several provinces prompted attempts to revise history and civics materials, sparking protests from organizations such as the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo and teachers' unions, who consider these measures a setback in the construction of democratic memory.

The central question in this cultural battle is who has the legitimacy to decide what content should be taught in public schools. For some, the state should reflect the values ​​of the majority, while for others, education should promote diversity, inclusion, and critical thinking.

Experts in pedagogy and human rights, such as Claudia Romero of Torcuato Di Tella University, point out that the risk of turning the education system into a constant arena of political dispute is the delegitimization of the school as a shared learning space and the deepening of social polarization.

This phenomenon is not unique to the region. Countries like the United States, Hungary, and Poland are experiencing similar processes in which school curriculum is the subject of disputes that seek to influence the cultural and political identity of new generations.

However, in Latin America, institutional fragility and educational inequality exacerbate the consequences of these disputes: each government cycle could impose its own version of history, science, or values, making it difficult to build long-term social consensus.

Faced with this scenario, organizations such as UNESCO and education policy experts are proposing the need to build basic agreements on core content and ensure the participation of teachers, parents, and specialists to reduce political manipulation of the education system.

In a context of growing polarization, the challenge will be to maintain education as a space for the comprehensive development of students and not as a tool for ideological confrontation, ensuring that the content promotes respect, diversity, and critical thinking, pillars of any democratic society.