Florida Bill Would Ban History Lessons That Cause White Students “Discomfort”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is pushing for the passage of a bill that would forbid public school teachers from teaching information that could cause students to feel “discomfort,” in yet another GOP attempt to censor lessons about the history of racism in the U.S.

Companies that require employees to be trained on discrimination and racism in the workplace would also be affected by the bill.

“An individual should not be made to feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress on account of his or her race,” reads Senate Bill 148, which was approved by the Republican-controlled Senate Education Committee on Tuesday.

All Democrats on the committee voted against the bill’s advancementThey argued that the bill would cause a number of lawsuits as well as censorship in schools across the state. They also stated that there were no actual-world cases that would justify passing the bill and warned that it could hinder educators from teaching factual history.

Sen. Shevrin J. (D), ranking member of Education Committee, condemned this legislation.

“This bill’s not for Blacks, this bill was not for any other race. This was directed to make whites not feel bad about what happened years ago,” Jones said. “At no point did anyone say white people should be held responsible for what happened, but what I would ask my white counterparts is, are you an enabler of what happened or are you going to say we must talk about history?”

DeSantis’s promotion of the bill He is now free after his repeated attacksCritical Race Theory (CRT), An academic field that emerged in 1970sTo examine how institutions perpetuate racial/gender inequality in the U.S. While CRT is not taught in most K-12 schools, conservative lawmakers have created a false narrative about it being taught in U.S. classrooms. This is likely to inspire support from their base through fear mongering and racist fear. (CRT is one of many lies being promoted by Republican lawmakers. white people to hate themselves.)

Jones said that DeSantis, whose name is being considered for the GOP nomination for president in 2024, is traveling “across the country with his racist rhetoric on critical race theory.”

“It’s a problem that doesn’t exist,” Jones said.

In a recent Instagram post, anti-racist author Ibram X. Kendi pointed out that the notion that white people should be protected from “discomfort” was also used to justify segregation.

“I am reminded of segregationists who justified separate restrooms, elevators, waiting rooms, restaurants, phone booths, water fountains, parks, schools, pools, and even cemeteries by claiming White adults and children felt ‘discomfort’ around Black people,” Kendi said. “And now this.”