Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is facing mockery for inviting the vice president to discuss his state’s standards for teaching Black history.
On Tuesday, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) shared a letter DeSantis sent to Vice President Kamala Harris and wrote, “Imagine being desperate enough to be thirsty for a Kamala visit.”
Imagine being desperate enough to be thirsty for a Kamala visit. https://t.co/hsieGFfJet
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) August 1, 2023
In the letter, DeSantis wrote, “We are committed to teaching truth, not partisan narratives. We have rooted out hateful Marxist theories like ‘Critical Race Theory’ from our classrooms. We have eliminated ‘Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’ initiatives in school administration and hiring practices. We have, instead, focused on the basics of reading, writing, arithmetic, science, civics and history.”
He went on to accuse politicians in Washington, D.C., of trying to “malign our state and its residents.”
DeSantis also accused the Biden administration of disparaging Florida’s education system.
The governor argued, “Our state pushed forward nation-leading standalone African American History standards — one of the only states in the nation to require this level of learning about such an important subject.”
He added, “One would think the White House would applaud such boldness in teaching the unique and important story of African American History. But you have instead attempted to score cheap political points and label Florida parents ‘extremists.’ It’s past time to set the record straight.”
Finally, DeSantis said, “You clearly have no trouble ducking down to Florida on short notice. So given your grave concern (which, I must assume, is sincere) about what you think our standards say, I am officially inviting you back down to Florida to discuss our African American History standards.”
DeSantis’ letter comes as a portion of Florida’s new standards for Black history has come under fire.
The new curriculum includes a portion that teaches slaves learned skills they later benefited from.
Last month, Harris criticized the curriculum as she said, “They want to replace history with lies. These extremist, so-called leaders should model what we know to be the correct and right approach if we really are invested in the well being of our children.”
“Instead, they dare to push propaganda to our children. This is the United States of America. We’re not supposed to do that,” she continued.
She asked, “How is it that anyone could suggest that in the midst of these atrocities that there was any benefit to being subjected to this level of dehumanization?”
