FLORIDA OFFICIALS WRONG TO REJECT AP AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES COURSE
 

The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC)  condemns the Florida Department of Education’s  (DOE) Office of Articulation for its rejection of Advanced Placement course on African American studies for high school students. In a letter to the College Board, the DOE  expressed concern that “the content of this course is inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value.”

Recently the DOE released a list of reasons for rejecting the Advanced Placement course. This document makes it clear that what the state officials really object to is not a lack of educational value but some of the ideas discussed in the course. For example, they reject the discussion of Black Lives Matter because its members advocate for eliminating prisons and jails and ending pretrial detention. Similarly, they object to the topic of “Black Study and Black Struggle in the 21st Century” because it includes a reading that argues “activism, rather than the university system, is the catalyst for social transformation.”  Read National Coalition Against Censorship's (NCAC) full response to DOE activities at ncac.org. 

In a joint letter to the Florida College System Council of Presidents, NCAC and the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) challenged a pledge made by the Florida College System Council of Presidents' to enforce the "Stop WOKE Act" and remove all" woke" positions and ideologies from university and college curriculum. The letter called on institutional leaders, administrators, and staff who are asked to limit access to information to refuse, as no statute, regulation, or statement can replace the obligations of free speech promised by the First Amendment.

In letters to St. Lucie Public Schools in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and Hernando School District in Brooksville, Florida, the NCAC expressed its concerns about the removal of books pulled from library shelves. In both cases, school administrators violated district review policies by sidestepping review committees and banning books based on their personal beliefs that the materials were "harmful to minors" or "obscene." The NCAC has requested that the school districts honor their review policies and return books until professional assessments of educational value are completed.

NCAC letters are available for review at ncac.org/news.