Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Feb. 23 called out what he called “media lies” over the Sunshine State banning the Advanced Placement (AP) course for African American Studies.
DeSantis said that the media “tried to create in Florida a narrative.”
“It’s basically a book ban hoax. It’s a hoax what they’re doing. And they’re trying to say that, because we have parental rights and because we have curriculum transparency, if you have a book that’s hardcore pornography in a library [that] 10-year-olds can access, a parent objects to that. That does not satisfy Florida [curriculum] standards. It should not be in the library with those young kids. And I think 99 percent of parents agree with that.”
DeSantis noted that Florida law requires the factual, unpoliticized teaching of African American history.
The governor accused critics of taking books off bookshelves to create a narrative to muddy the waters over the AP course ban, like one school taking a book about MLB Hall-of-Famer Hank Aaron “because it talks about he faced racial discrimination.”
“They’re doing that to try to create a narrative. They’re not doing that because Florida has a law like that or anything like that,” DeSantis said. “They know that’s not in the law, but they’re doing it because there’s enough people in corporate media who will just take that and will run with that.”
DeSantis last month blocked the teaching of the AP course that he said was politically biased and “pushing an agenda” on students. The course includes far-left content including Black liberation theology, the movement to abolish prisons, Black Lives Matter, a push for reparations, and queer studies. The College Board has since revised the curriculum.
Left-wing media has blasted the DeSantis administration for banning the AP course.
