Florida's New Black History Teaching Standards Draw Strong Criticisms -- Here's Why

The Florida Board of Education has set new standards for how Black history should be taught in public schools as part of Gov. Ron DeSantis's controversial culture war policies. However, critics have slammed the decision, with many calling it "backwards."

This new policy was approved during a Florida Board of Education meeting on Wednesday. In their decision, the school board rejected the Department of Education's preliminary pilot version of an Advanced Placement African American Studies course for high school students, claiming that it lacked educational value.

The new guidelines came after a DeSantis-backed law was passed barring schools from teaching anything that suggests anyone is privileged or oppressed based on their race or skin color as part of his campaign against "wokeness," per CNN.

This new standard was slammed by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

"Our children deserve nothing less than truth, justice, and the equity our ancestors shed blood, sweat, and tears for," said the organization's President and CEO Derrick Johnson. "It is imperative that we understand that the horrors of slavery and Jim Crow were a violation of human rights and represent the darkest period in American history."

Republicans Defend New Florida Black History Education Standards

The Florida Board of Education praised its passing, saying that the board members are "proud" of it.

Florida Department of Education communications director Alex Lanfranconi said, "It's sad to see critics attempt to discredit what any unbiased observer would conclude to be in-depth and comprehensive African American History standards. They incorporate all components of African American History: the good, the bad, and the ugly."

He added, "these standards will further cement Florida as a national leader in education, as we continue to provide true and accurate instruction in African American History."

MaryLynn Magar, a former Republican state congresswoman, spoke with the Tallahassee Democrat and also defended the changes. saying, "Everything is there. The darkest parts of our history are addressed, and I'm very proud of the task force."

However, teachers' associations and unions like the Florida Education Association condemned this and stated that these standards are a disservice to students and "a big step backward for a state that has required teaching African American history since 1994."

Other civil rights groups also pointed out that this new curriculum revises "key historical facts about the Black experience" to soften their brutal realities for white students' consumption.

Teachers Will Be Teaching Students That African Americans 'Benefitted' From Slavery

Florida argued that students should not be instructed to "feel guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress" due to their race, color, sex, or national origin. However. many argued against this and say that this is a whitewashing of history.

Politico noted that the new standards will have middle school students be taught "how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit," instead of teaching how slaves were regularly demeaned, mistreated, or treated as mere livestock or property by their owners.

Several historic events and massacres of African Americans, including the 1920 Ocoee massacre. the Atlanta race massacre, the Tulsa race massacre, and the Rosewood race massacre will be watered down and will also do some victim-blaming as students will be taught that these are "acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans."

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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