Florida Board of Education Unanimously Votes to Ban Critical Race Theory in Public Schools

Florida Board of Education Unanimously Votes to Ban Critical Race Theory in Public Schools

On Thursday, June 10, Governor Ron DeSantis joined the Florida Board of Education to announce new teaching standards banning elements of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the state’s public schools. In a unanimous 8-0 vote, the Board of Education adopted a rule change that says, in part, “instruction on the required topics must be factual and objective, and may not suppress or distort significant historical events.”

DeSantis issued a press release highlighting his remarks at the event, held in Jacksonville:

Today, Governor DeSantis joined the State Board of Education Meeting to discuss the importance of maintaining the integrity of Florida’s academic standards by keeping Critical Race Theory out of the classroom.

“The woke class wants to teach kids to hate each other, rather than teaching them how to read, but we will not let them bring nonsense ideology into Florida’s schools,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “As the Governor of Florida, I love this state, and I love my country. I find it unthinkable that there are other people in positions of leadership in the federal government who believe that we should teach kids to hate our country. We will not stand for it here in Florida. I’m proud that we are taking action today to ensure our state continues to have the greatest educational system in the nation.”

In his press release, DeSantis noted several attempts to teach CRT in Florida schools:

• Palm Beach County School Board approved a new “Equity Definition” and “Equity Statement” on May 5, 2021, which reads in part: “The School District of Palm Beach County is committed to dismantling structures rooted in white advantage.” More here.
• In Sarasota County Public Schools, they showed a Black Lives Matter video that says in part “there is a built-in system of bias that makes life easier for white people.” Find the video here.
• In Jacksonville, a school planned to hold two school cultural meetings in which students would be separated based on race. More here.

School districts face fiscal sanctions for violating the new rule, which now reads:

(3) As provided in Section 1003.42(2), F.S., members of instructional staff in public schools must teach the required instruction topics efficiently and faithfully, using materials that meet the highest standards of professionalism and historical accuracy.

(a) Efficient and faithful teaching of the required topics must be consistent with the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards and the Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking (B.E.S.T.) Standards.

(b) Instruction on the required topics must be factual and objective, and may not suppress or distort significant historical events, such as the Holocaust, and may not define American history as something other than the creation of a new nation based largely on universal principles stated in the Declaration of Independence.

(c) Efficient and faithful teaching further means that any discussion is appropriate for the age and maturity level of the students, and teachers serve as facilitators for student discussion and do not share their personal views or attempt to indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view that is inconsistent with the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards and the Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking (B.E.S.T.) Standards. [emphasis added]

According to local media reports, teachers unions in Florida objected to the change. The Florida Educators Association (FEA) specifically objected to the ban on indoctrination. The FEA asked that section 3(b) read:

Instruction on the required topics must be factual and objective, and may not suppress or distort significant historical events, such as the Holocaust, slavery, the Civil War and Reconstruction, Jim Crow, the civil rights movement, the Trail of Tears and contributions of African Americans, Hispanic people and women to our United States. The study of American History must include discussions of the principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and subsequent amendments that reflect a more diverse America than are represented in our founding documents.

Just yesterday, @FloridaEA, the state’s largest teacher’s union, said the new guideline “falls short” and that it “appears to have a political, rather than educational, motive…” Union offered an alternative version: pic.twitter.com/fs4gVtjeVv

— Forrest Saunders (@FBSaunders) June 10, 2021

The meeting of the Board of Education was disrupted, causing a delay in the vote on the rule change.

Meeting is breaking for five minutes to restore order after opponents started chanting “allow teachers to teach the truth!” pic.twitter.com/5g92lz4Z4V

— Forrest Saunders (@FBSaunders) June 10, 2021

The new rule takes effect 34 days after today’s meeting, meaning it will apply starting for the fall semester.

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Jeff Reynolds is the author of the book, “Behind the Curtain: Inside the Network of Progressive Billionaires and Their Campaign to Undermine Democracy,” available at www.WhoOwnsTheDems.com. Jeff hosts a podcast at anchor.fm/BehindTheCurtain. You can follow him on Twitter @ChargerJeff, on Parler at @RealJeffReynolds, and on Gab at @RealJeffReynolds.

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