New guidelines in Florida to effectively ban critical race theory from being taught in public schools

New guidelines in Florida will seek to change how teachers approach U.S. history, civics and government lessons with an added emphasis on patriotism and the U.S. Constitution.

Commissioner of the Florida Department of Education Richard Corcoran states that this law will help to be better teachers. This discussion was held during a monthly board meeting and lasted four hours. The meeting was held at the Florida State College at Jacksonville’s Advanced Technology Center campus downtown. Without explicitly mentioning critical race theory, Florida Education Association President Andrew Spar similarly decried politicians who “create boogeymen and use Florida’s public schools as political football.”

“It’s an effort to white-wash, cover-up and candy coat history,” said Ben Frazier, president of the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville. “Allow teachers to speak the truth.” The governor, speaking via a video connection, told the State Board of Education that he does not want to stop children from learning about slavery or the civil rights movement, only to make sure they don’t hear “narratives that are not grounded in facts.”

He wants to prevent, he has said, students from learning a “false history,” where they “look back and denigrate the Founding Fathers, denigrate the American Revolution.” The board voted on the rule after hearing from the governor and more than 30 speakers. Florida is among more than a dozen Republican-led states seeking this year to ban critical race theory from its schools.

ARTICLE: JENNIFER BARRETO-LEYVA
MANAGING EDITOR: CARSON CHOATE
PHOTO CREDITS: NBC NEWS