Florida Rejects New African American Studies Course; Manatee County Teachers Cover Books After New Ban

This is pure madness! And as Emma Goldman long ago said, "The most violent element in society is ignorance."

It is so incredibly important for us to be aware of the countless ways that our freedoms — the freedom to be informed, to know our own history, to be empowered by truth, to be known and understood and valued, to simply be who we are, and on and on — are under extreme assault day by day. We must recognize the dangers in our midst that are propagated by incredibly wounded people in positions of power. 

May we unite in ever growing numbers in the national and universal struggle for truth, justice, democracy, and freedom from the roots of so much of our trauma and suffering. 🙏 Molly

In Florida, racial justice advocates and educators have vowed to fight the blocking of a proposed new advanced placement course on African American studies. Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday said he supports Florida’s Education Department after it claimed the class violated state law and pushed a “political agenda” by teaching high school students about the Black Lives Matter movement, Black queer studies, slavery and reparations, and other topics centering Black historical figures and events.

Meanwhile, teachers in Manatee County, Florida, have taken to covering up or removing books from their class libraries after a new law prohibiting classroom material that hasn’t been vetted and approved by so-called certified media specialists went into effect. Teachers found in violation of these guidelines face felony charges.

Please go here for the original headline on Democracy Now!: https://www.democracynow.org/2023/1/25/headlines/florida_rejects_new_african_american_studies_course_manatee_county_teachers_cover_books_after_new_ban