Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) faces criticism after his administration rejected an Advanced Placement African American Studies course from being delivered to Florida schools, the latest curriculum-related action by the governor that sparked a fierce reaction.
The DeSantis administration took the action earlier this month, when it sent a letter to the College Board Florida Partnership arguing that “the content of this course is inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacking in educational value.” The letter did not mention what law the course allegedly violated, and the state Department of Education would not clarify that matter when asked by The Hill.
The action has drawn strong criticism, with Democratic lawmakers and LGBTQ advocates comparing it to DeSantis’ recent crusade against Florida schools that teach lessons related to sexual orientation or gender identity, topics that state officials have argued are inappropriate for the children.
“Florida is doing everything it can to tip the scales and close important and much-needed discussions about race, slavery, stolen land and the undeniable history that have gotten us to where we are today as a society,” said Florida Sen. Shevrin Jones (D). , the state’s first openly gay senator, said in a statement Thursday. “Gov. DeSantis’ story whitewashing and book bans are his latest assault on American history and our First Amendment rights. Horribly, it is our vulnerable and underrepresented students who will suffer the most as a result.”
A February 2022 Quinnipiac University poll found that only 27 percent of Americans felt that the United States history taught in schools reflects an accurate portrayal of the role of African Americans in the country. The new Advanced Placement course, which is currently a pilot program at 60 schools across the country, has been in the works for more than a decade, according to the College Board.
Ivory Toldson, the NAACP’s director of Educational Innovation and Research, condemned Florida’s rejection of the course.
“The frivolous dismissal of Ron DeSantis from an AP African American Studies course is not only a breach of his duty to ensure an equitable education for all Floridians, but shows a clear disdain for the lives and experiences that are part of our national history. Toldson said in a statement on Friday.
“Dismissing this important topic as lacking ‘educational value’ defies centuries of evidence to the contrary. African-American history is American history, and not understanding this simple fact is itself un-American.”
But Florida’s rejection of the course follows a pattern from last year, when DeSantis signed the Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees Act. The law, known as the Stop WOKE Act, prohibits any instruction that could make someone feel “personally responsible” for historical wrongdoing because of your race, sex, or national origin.
Introducing the legislative proposal last year, DeSantis said the measure was written with the intention of “taking a stand against the state-sanctioned racism that is critical race theory,” an academic theory that addresses systemic racism in The USA.
But academics have argued that concepts related to critical race theory are not taught until students reach the university level.
“Remember when they told us they weren’t opposed to teaching black history, just ‘CRT’? And how many of us dismissed those who said that these laws were anti-history and anti-black laws? Maybe one day people will listen to those who know,” Nikole Hannah-Jones, creator of The New York Times 1619 Project, wrote on Twitter.
The Hannah-Jones show, which puts the repercussions of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the forefront of the national narrative, has been banned from Florida classrooms.
“Our story has been treated as illegitimate for a long time,” Hannah-Jones said. “It’s always been questioned.”
DeSantis’ office did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment.
The governor, considered one of the leading Republican contenders for the 2024 presidential election, was sworn in for his second term on January 3. During his inauguration speech, he highlighted the education reforms his administration passed in his first term.
“Florida ranks first in educational freedom and we rank first in parental involvement in education,” DeSantis said. “We must ensure that school systems are responsive to parents and students, not partisan interest groups, and we must ensure that our higher education institutions focus on academic excellence and truth-seeking, not on imposition of a fashionable ideology.
“Florida should always be a great place to raise a family – we will enact more family-friendly policies to make it easier to raise children, and we will defend our children against those who seek to steal their innocence,” she added.
Jones, the Florida state senator, tweetd on friday that florida had become a “Don’t Say Black” state, a reference to a new Florida education law known by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law for its strong restrictions on how LGBTQ issues and identities can be addressed in the classroom.
New York Rep. Ritchie Torres (D), currently the member of Congress who is black and openly gay, similarlyfound: “Florida has gone from Don’t Say Gay to Don’t Say Black”.
Officially dubbed the “Parental Rights in Education” law, the measure, which went into effect in July, prohibits public elementary school teachers from participating in classroom instruction related to sexual orientation and gender identity. Educators through high school are prohibited from approaching either subject in a manner that is not “age or developmentally appropriate” to their students, though no concrete definition has been given to either term.
Florida teachers who break the law risk having their licenses suspended or revoked under a rule adopted by the state Board of Education in October.
But restrictive curricular laws, particularly those related to LGBTQ issues, are mostly unpopular with the American public.
In March, an ABC News-Ipsos poll found that more than 60 percent of adults oppose legislation that seeks to ban elementary school teachers from addressing sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom.
Yet Americans are more divided on whether such lessons should be taught in high school, and a May Morning Consult poll found that while 41 percent of American parents support teaching or discussing sexual orientation and identity in K-12 classrooms, 44 percent oppose it. .
