Key takeaways:
- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis defended the state’s decision to block a high school Advanced Placement course on African American studies.
- DeSantis said the course was an attempt to “shoehorn in queer theory” and impose a political agenda on students.
- The proposed course was a multidisciplinary study of the African American diaspora that included topics such as the African American experience, the civil rights movement, and the impact of racism on society.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday defended the state’s decision to block a high school Advanced Placement course on African American studies, citing the course’s inclusion of lessons on Black queer theory and the prison abolition movement.
In his first public statement on the matter, DeSantis said the course was an attempt to “shoehorn in queer theory” and impose a political agenda on students.
“We believe in teaching kids facts and how to think, but we don’t believe they should have an agenda imposed on them,” he said, calling the course “indoctrination.”
The Florida Department of Education (FDOE) sent a letter to the College Board, which handles all AP courses, in Florida on Jan. 12 saying that the content of the AP African American studies course “is inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value.”
The proposed course was a multidisciplinary study of the African American diaspora that included topics such as the African American experience, the civil rights movement, and the impact of racism on society.
DeSantis said the state is committed to teaching students facts and how to think, but that it will not allow courses that are used to push a political agenda.
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