In mid-March, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) changed the name of its Confucius Institutes Headquarters to the Center for Language Education and Cooperation. [i]
Why is this relevant to Arkansas? We will explain.
Confucius Institutes which are hosted on American university campuses have been identified by the U.S. government as being a propaganda program controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. The University of Central Arkansas is one of the universities hosting the education/propaganda program.
Changing the name of the headquarters is a marketing ploy to avoid a criticism of the program. Although the name of the headquarters has changed, the Chinese Communist Party has not yet renamed the individual Confucius Institutes on American university campuses.
Also in March, the U.S. Senate passed legislation to cut federal funding for any university that hosts the communist controlled institutes unless the university regulates all teaching staff hired for the institute and oversees the curriculum. Not only was the U.S. Senate vote a bipartisan vote, it was a unanimous vote. The legislation still needs approval by the U.S. House of Representatives.[ii]
Senator Tom Cotton said, “Confucius Institutes are front groups for the Chinese Communist Party on American campuses.”[iii]
There are currently 51 Confucius Institutes in America universities, including the one at UCA. Seven of the 51 universities have announced they will terminate their partnership with Communist China. Previously, forty other universities have already terminated their partnerships.
We doubt the UCA board members appointed by Governor Hutchinson would terminate their Communist China program because the Governor is still emphasizing more connections between Arkansas and China. Also, the Governor’s law firm, Asa Hutchinson Law Firm, represents several communist controlled Chinese corporations.
Still, it is worthwhile to make your opinion heard!
[i] https://www.foxnews.com/us/confucius-institutes-headquarter-name-change
[ii] https://www.foxnews.com/politics/bill-limiting-confucius-institutes-passed-unanimously-senate
[iii] Senator Cotton Facebook post 2/10/2021
