Dear MoveOn member,

Teachers in Florida have removed books from their classrooms or wrapped
their bookshelves in paper so that students can't access them in order to
avoid being charged with a felony—up to five years in prison and a $5,000
fine—simply for providing students books that Ron DeSantis and his
supporters find offensive.^1

Bookshelves in some Florida schools are "entirely barren of books."^2

DeSantis also just banned the teaching of AP African American Studies—a
course that covers slavery, the civil rights movement, and much
more—saying the course "lacked educational value."^3

And, starting last fall, Florida is requiring high school students to
submit detailed information about their menstrual cycles to the government
in order to be cleared to play school sports.^4 Really.

These dystopian policies follow on the heels of DeSantis's push to ban
abortion, attack and further marginalize trans youth, and ban the teaching
of accurate American history in favor of upholding a white supremacist
vision of our nation.

DeSantis is expected to officially announce his run for president in the
coming weeks, and pundits agree that these efforts in Florida are meant to
reflect his campaign platform and attract the most extreme voters using
vile, dangerous culture-war tactics.



We need to be prepared to stop DeSantis in his tracks—and fight back
against efforts in other states to replicate his Orwellian system of
oppression. Will you help by starting a $5 monthly donation
to power and sustain our efforts for as long as it takes?

[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.

[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.



John, we need to be clear-eyed in this moment, because these
moves by DeSantis are not empty threats—they are already having real-world
impact.

On Wednesday, the organization that oversees all AP courses announced that
it had caved to conservative pressure and would remove all mentions of
slavery reparations, queer representation, the Black Lives Matter
movement, and more from its curriculum.^5

This is the world that DeSantis and the Republicans want to build.

A world where not only is white supremacy the norm, but where discussions
about the treatment of Black Americans and other people of color are
illegal.

A world where books are burned for daring to tell the truth.

A world where our children are not free to gain knowledge.

A world where menstruating people are tracked day and night so that they
can be punished if they have abortions.

MoveOn will work day in and day out to stop Republican-led book bans,
attacks on the teaching of accurate American history, and efforts to ban
abortion—and come 2024, we will be prepared to run the biggest election
program in our history to ensure that the MAGA extremists behind all of
them are defeated.



But we need your help to do it, John. Will you join the fight
by chipping in $5 a month? Your ongoing donation will help
ensure MoveOn has the resources to plan and execute the hard-hitting
campaigns needed to stop the right wing.

[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in monthly.

[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.



Thanks for all you do.

–David, Nadia, Jenn, Jennifer, and the rest of the team

Sources:

1. "Hide your books to avoid felony charges, Fla. schools tell teachers,"
The Washington Post, January 31, 2023
[link removed]

2. Ibid.

3. "Gov. DeSantis defends rejection of African American studies course,"
CBS News, January 23, 2023
[link removed]

4. "Florida Wants to Force Student Athletes to Share Their Menstrual
History," The Cut, February 1, 2023
[link removed]

5. "Revised AP African American Studies class drops controversial topics
after criticism," NPR, February 1, 2023
[link removed]



Want to support MoveOn's work? Voters just defied history and stopped a
MAGA wave of extremism at the polls. But there is more work to do to end
the filibuster, codify abortion rights into law, and defend our freedoms,
our families, and our futures. We can accomplish all this and more, but
only if we work together. 
 
Will you chip in monthly to power our critical work? 

[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month.

[ [link removed] ]No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation.





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