Floridian Teens Give Up Saturdays To Learn Black History Lessons

[RAMROD 117,031]

Buried among Florida’s manicured golf courses and sprawling suburbs are the artifacts of its slave-holding past: the long-lost cemeteries of enslaved people, the statutes of Confederate soldiers that still stand watch over town squares, the old plantations turned into modern subdivisions that bear the same name. But many students aren’t learning that kind of Black history in Florida classrooms. 

In an old wooden bungalow in Delray Beach, Charlene Farrington and her staff gather groups of teenagers on Saturday mornings to teach them lessons she worries that public schools won’t provide. They talk about South Florida’s Caribbean roots, the state’s dark history of lynchings, how segregation still shapes the landscape and how grassroots activists mobilized the Civil Rights Movement to upend generations of oppression.

“You need to know how it happened before so you can decide how you want it to happen again,” she told her students as they sat as their desks, the morning light illuminating historic photographs on the walls.

Florida students are giving up their Saturday mornings to learn about African American history at the Spady Cultural Heritage Museum in Delray Beach and in similar programs at community centers across the state. Many are supported by Black churches, which for generations have helped forge the cultural and political identity of their parishioners.

Since Faith in Florida developed its own Black history toolkit last year, more than 400 congregations have pledged to teach the lessons, the advocacy group says.

Florida has required public schools to teach African American history for the past 30 years, but many families no longer trust the state’s education systemto adequately address the subject. 

By the state’s own metrics, just a dozen Florida school districts have demonstrated excellence at teaching Black history, by providing evidence that they are incorporating the content into lessons throughout the school year and getting buy-in from the school board and community partners.

School district officials across Florida told The Associated Press that they are still following the state mandate to teach about the experience of enslavement, abolition and the “vital contributions of African Americans to build and strengthen American society.” 

But a common complaint from students and parents is that the instruction seems limited to heroic figures like the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks and rarely extends beyond each February’s Black History Month.

State lawmakers unanimously approved the African American history requirement in 1994 at a time of atonement over Florida’s history.

Historians commissioned by the state had just published an official report on the deadly attack on the town of Rosewood in 1923, when a white mob razed the majority-Black community and drove out its residents. When the Florida Legislature approved financial compensation for Rosewood’s survivors and descendants in 1994, it was seen as a national model for reparations.

Three decades later, the teaching of African American history remains inconsistent across Florida classrooms, inadequate in the eyes of some advocates, and is under fire by the administration of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has championed efforts to restrict how race, history and discrimination can be talked about in the state’s public schools. 

DeSantis has led attacks on “wokeness” in education that rallied conservatives nationwide, including President-elect Donald Trump. In 2022, the governor signed a law restricting certain race-based conversations in schools and businesses and prohibits teaching that members of one ethnic group should feel guilt or bear responsibility for actions taken by previous generations.

Last year, DeSantis’ administration blocked a new Advanced Placement course on African American Studies from being taught in Florida, saying it violates state law and is historically inaccurate.

A spokesperson for the College Board, which oversees Advanced Placement courses, told the AP they are not aware of any public schools in Florida currently offering the African American Studies class. It’s also not listed in the state’s current course directory. 

Representatives for the Florida Department of Education and the state’s African American History Task Force did not respond to requests for comment from the AP.

Last year, only 30 of Florida’s 67 traditional school districts offered at least one standalone course on African American history or humanities, according to state data. While not required by state law, having a dedicated Black history class is a measure of how districts are following the state mandate.

Florida’s large urban districts are far more likely to offer the classes, compared to small rural districts, some of which have fewer than 2,000 students. 

Even in districts that have staff dedicated to teaching Black history, some teachers are afraid of violating state law, according to Brian Knowles, who oversees African American, Holocaust and Latino studies for the Palm Beach County school district.

https://apnews.com/article/florida-black-history-desantis-african-american-education-8d14b055ddda651d2761dca30bba5600?taid=67674f84ae6b4b00011f36cf&utm_campaign=TrueAnthem&utm_medium=AP&utm_source=Twitter

[PartySick 172,498]

This does not make me feel good. Kids should be learning about this stuff in school, not voluntarily 'cause the government has banned black history from being taught.

[Economy 52,844]

16 minutes ago, PartySick said:

This does not make me feel good. Kids should be learning about this stuff in school, not voluntarily 'cause the government has banned black history from being taught.

[PartySick 172,498]

7 minutes ago, Economy said:

Yah, a lot of black history got stricken from Florida public schools' curriculum 'cause

1) We can't enforce the notion that the US is a racist nation (like teaching kids that the founding fathers owned people)

2) It leads to division and can make white students feel awkward and guilty

3) "Critical race theory" (a term they are not using properly) is "woke ideology"

4) When black history is permissible, kids are to be taught that slaves were actually just workers and that slavery was a net positive for them 'cause look at all these fine black folks who were saved from the wasteland of Africa and now get to live in American utopia. And entrepreneurs (slave owners) actually treated their workers (slaves) pretty well and provided food and shelter for them

DeSantis even had math textbooks pulled from schools 'cause they were too "woke"  can't teach kids about queer history either, or even officially acknowledge the gay community.

Sex education is on its way out

Religious education in public schools is probably only a term or two away

Florida is to the US what the US is to the rest of the world. Hence why I wanna leave so goddamn bad

[Economy 52,844]

2 minutes ago, PartySick said:

Yah, a lot of black history got stricken from Florida public schools' curriculum 'cause

1) We can't enforce the notion that the US is a racist nation (like teaching kids that the founding fathers owned people)

2) It leads to division and can make white students feel awkward and guilty

3) "Critical race theory" (a term they are not using properly) is "woke ideology"

4) When black history is permissible, kids are to be taught that slaves were actually just workers and that slavery was a net positive for them 'cause look at all these fine black folks who were saved from the wasteland of Africa and now get to live in American utopia. And entrepreneurs (slave owners) actually treated their workers (slaves) pretty well and provided food and shelter for them

DeSantis even had math textbooks pulled from schools 'cause they were too "woke"  can't teach kids about queer history either, or even officially acknowledge the gay community.

Sex education is on its way out

Religious education in public schools is probably only a term or two away

Florida is to the US what the US is to the rest of the world. Hence why I wanna leave so goddamn bad

Thats crazy. Lets just erase that inconvinient history

 

To be fair in Canada we did something simmilar tho not at the same level cuz it wasnt a complete ban.

 

But basically for the longest time in schools we minimized how badly we treated 1st Nation Natives to put it mildly. Tho there was recognition their land was innitially stollen with the European settlers, we essentially made it sound like after that innital twntions it was essentially all peachy and dandy after that

 

Meanwhile a lot of dirt came out that as recently as 50 to 60 years ago there was severe abuse and in some cases even covered up deaths of 1st Nation children in residential schools due to neglect or mistreatment

[PartySick 172,498]

1 minute ago, Economy said:

Thats crazy. Lets just erase that inconvinient history

 

To be fair in Canada we did something simmilar tho not at the same level cuz it wasnt a complete ban.

 

But basically for the longest time in schools we minimized how badly we treated 1st Nation Natives to put it mildly. Tho there was recognition their land was innitially stollen with the European settlers, we essentially made it sound like after that innital twntions it was essentially all peachy and dandy after that

 

Meanwhile a lot of dirt came out that as recently as 50 to 60 years ago there was severe abuse and in some cases even covered up deaths of 1st Nation children in residential schools due to neglect or mistreatment

Oh yeah, I know a bit about that. My friend lives in Orillia, his tribe/people live about an hour north (or north-ish) from there on a reservation and there are significant efforts to not only revive and preserve their culture but educate others on it. Not too long ago they had a kind of fashion show full of traditional clothing. He wore this gorgeous hand beaded skirt that he and his sister made.

The US did similar things to its native people, of course. But that isn't taught in schools either. The "Trail of Tears" is summarized but that's about it. Otherwise, colonists are portrayed as heros.

Hell, something that's shockingly unknown even here in Florida is in the mid-1900s (starting around the 1930s), more than a third of Puerto Rican women were sterilized. The American government saw it as a solution to the fear of overpopulation and poverty on the island. There are women alive today who were coerced, lied to, or forcefully sterilized by the US government and never got as much as an official apology.

They won't teach that kind of stuff in school 'cause it messes with the whole state propaganda "we are the best nation in the world" schtick.

[Economy 52,844]

46 minutes ago, PartySick said:

Oh yeah, I know a bit about that. My friend lives in Orillia, his tribe/people live about an hour north (or north-ish) from there on a reservation and there are significant efforts to not only revive and preserve their culture but educate others on it. Not too long ago they had a kind of fashion show full of traditional clothing. He wore this gorgeous hand beaded skirt that he and his sister made.

The US did similar things to its native people, of course. But that isn't taught in schools either. The "Trail of Tears" is summarized but that's about it. Otherwise, colonists are portrayed as heros.

Hell, something that's shockingly unknown even here in Florida is in the mid-1900s (starting around the 1930s), more than a third of Puerto Rican women were sterilized. The American government saw it as a solution to the fear of overpopulation and poverty on the island. There are women alive today who were coerced, lied to, or forcefully sterilized by the US government and never got as much as an official apology.

They won't teach that kind of stuff in school 'cause it messes with the whole state propaganda "we are the best nation in the world" schtick.

This is one thing Trudeau has done well if nothing else. Hes done more for 1st Nations reconciliation and compensation than any other Prime Minister in history including expensive investments as well in their communities

 

But its dark to think how much mistreatment existed even in the current life time. Were not talking atrocoties of ancestors that are long dead. There are victims still alive today

 

At least enough ppl are listening now that a lot of them got to go on major news platforms and tell their stories including the residential schools they were forced to go to and the treatment they got

[PartySick 172,498]

8 minutes ago, Economy said:

At least enough ppl are listening now that aot of them got to go on major news platforms and tell their stories including the residential schools they were forced to go to and the treatment they got

The irony of banning such topics in schools is that it brings attention to them which makes kids learn about them anyway when before it would probably just be something they memorized for a test or homework then forgot about.

[Roughhouse Dandy 13,612]

Horrendous that these steps have to be taken just so kids can get a halfway acceptable education in the United States of America, but it's admirable that people are taking it into their own hands. 

I just hope there won't be anymore retaliation once the word gets back to Ms. DeSkanktus. 

[River 127,395]

4 hours ago, PartySick said:

Yah, a lot of black history got stricken from Florida public schools' curriculum 'cause

1) We can't enforce the notion that the US is a racist nation (like teaching kids that the founding fathers owned people)

2) It leads to division and can make white students feel awkward and guilty

3) "Critical race theory" (a term they are not using properly) is "woke ideology"

4) When black history is permissible, kids are to be taught that slaves were actually just workers and that slavery was a net positive for them 'cause look at all these fine black folks who were saved from the wasteland of Africa and now get to live in American utopia. And entrepreneurs (slave owners) actually treated their workers (slaves) pretty well and provided food and shelter for them

DeSantis even had math textbooks pulled from schools 'cause they were too "woke"  can't teach kids about queer history either, or even officially acknowledge the gay community.

Sex education is on its way out

Religious education in public schools is probably only a term or two away

Florida is to the US what the US is to the rest of the world. Hence why I wanna leave so goddamn bad

isn't it a bit of a semi-apartheid?