Florida’s Republican Governor Ron
DeSantis offered more evidence of his orchestrated effort to muzzle Black
voices by refusing to allow his state’s high schools to add an Advanced
Placement course on African American Studies to their curriculum.
The one-time Trump ally said the
course violates state law and “lacks educational value.”
In a letter written by the Florida
Department of Education, DeSantis and the state rejected
the College Board’s recommendation for the pilot course which may expand from
its initial 60 schools to others in 2023-2024. The College Board is the
organization that administers college readiness exams like the Scholastic
Aptitude Test (SAT)/ They also oversee advanced placement courses that permit
students to earn college credits.
Florida’s letter described the
Board’s new AP course as “inexplicably contrary to Florida
law.”
Florida has a law on the books
called the “Woke Act.” The
legislation bans the teaching of Critical Race Theory in K-12 public schools
and universities. The law has been partially blocked in court, but Florida has
distributed a survey to gauge gender identity and diversity.
Other Republican-led states have
banned critical race theory from their school curriculum. Within hours of her
swearing-in, Arkansas
Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed an executive order outlawing CRT in
public schools. Arkansas is now one of seven states banning CRT with 16 others
considering a similar law.
