New Florida standards claim African Americans perpetrated historical race riots

Florida Republicans have rewritten the Black History curriculum. The resulting distortions are ugly and dangerous. [Democracy for America Advocacy Fund](#) {NAME}, What happens when Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Republicans try to rewrite Black history under their 2022 education law, the incredibly named Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (Stop WOKE) Act? Well, there’s nothing “woke” about a set of standards that includes this new benchmark: Standard SS.66.AA.2.3: Instruction includes how slaves developed skills which, in some instances, could be applied for their personal benefit. Another standard, minimizing the systemic violence perpetrated by slavery and its aftermath, enshrines “whataboutism,” placing the blame for race riots on Blacks as well as the white power structure: Standard SS.912.AA.3.6: Instruction includes acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans but is not limited to 1906 Atlanta Race Riot, 1919 Washington, D.C. Race Riot, 1920 Ocoee Massacre, 1921 Tulsa Massacre and the 1923 Rosewood Massacre. [These “standards” are required to be included any time Black history is taught in public schools in the state of Florida -- and it’s a disgrace. Sign the petition demanding Ron DeSantis cannot rewrite Black history now.]( [ADD YOUR NAME]( When confronted about the accuracy of slaves learning skills “for their personal benefit,” the authors of the standard wrote that such incidences are “well documented,” listing 16 names, including the folk hero John Henry, who purportedly died battling a steamshovel, and President George Washington’s white sister, Betty Washington Lewis. Of the 16 names listed, 9 were never enslaved, 9 were listed in the wrong industry, and 13 learned their skills outside of slavery (for instance, reading skills which were illegal to teach to slaves, or seamstress skills taught by an enslaved mother). And oh yes, one was the white sister of George Washington. And when, exactly, was a person, enslaved for life, supposed to apply these skills “for their personal benefit”? These “standards” are beyond outrageous and represent a real danger of misrepresenting history for generations of school children to come. How can a young person understand the very real destructive effects of slavery and the systemic economic and cultural racism that reverberate into the current day, when the schools view the past with such rose-colored glasses, blaming the oppressed for their oppression? [Register your objection to the severe distortions of the Florida education “standards.” Sign the petition and stand up for truth in the education of our young people now.]( Thank you for taking this step against the perpetuation of racist ideologies in our nation. - Amanda Amanda Ford, Director Democracy for America Advocacy Fund [Power This Campaign]( Democracy for America Advocacy Fund is a 501c4 organization. Contributions to the Democracy for America Advocacy Fund are not tax deductible for federal income tax purposes. Our mailing address is: PO Box 8521, Essex Junction VT 05451  Sent via [ActionNetwork.org](. To update your email address, change your name or address, or to stop receiving emails from Democracy for America Advocacy Fund, please [click here](.