New op-ed sarcastically shatters Ron DeSantis' accelerating mission to 'make Florida dumb'

01 March 2023

A new op-ed is taking aim at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) describing his political initiatives as efforts to "make Florida dumb."

According to HuffPost, the piece was inspired by DeSantis' recent press conference where he announced a proposal to prohibit the teaching of an AP African American studies course due to "queer theory" and prison abolition being included in the curriculum.

The governor argued that excluding the course would save children from being subjected to "a political agenda."

"We believe in teaching kids facts and how to think, but we don't believe they should have an agenda imposed on them. When you try to use Black history to shoehorn in queer theory, you are clearly trying to use that for political purposes," DeSantis explained.

In response to DeSantis' arguments, HuffPost's Michael Arceneaux did not mince words offering a critical perspective of the Republican governor.

"DeSantis is not an especially talented politician. He has very little charm, even fewer skills as an orator, and whether his fans care to admit it or not, he is largely foreseen as a successor to Donald Trump solely because he is the only decent knockoff of the real thing readily available.'"

He added, "Still, for what he lacks as a politician, DeSantis, like Trump, is a shameless bigot willing to punish communities for headlines — and there is constant reason to worry about how much damage a politician like that can cause."

Arceneaux went on to explain how DeSantis has used bigotry to promote and advance his political platform.

"DeSantis, like many of the aspiring Republican presidential nominees before him, has turned to bigotry to gain a national following, hence him treating queer and trans people as political pawns," he wrote.

Arceneaux's op-ed comes weeks after DeSantis also faced criticism from the College Board over his decision to take aim at the African American studies course.

"There is always debate about the content of a new AP course," the board wrote on Feb. 12. "That is good and healthy; these courses matter. But the dialogue surrounding AP African American Studies has moved from healthy debate to misinformation."

While the attack on the course is DeSantis' latest ploy, Arceneaux also explained why it is particularly problematic.

"DeSantis' attack on AP Black studies is the latest stunt of a familiar con, but the problem has now spread as other Republican governors — some with their own higher political aspirations — have taken cues from the Florida governor and are now targeting Black studies," he wrote.

Arceneaux concluded with cautionary advice about what could go wrong by enabling a man like DeSantis.

"It is a dangerous power to give to someone as small-minded as Ron DeSantis," Arceneaux warned, "and if he's granted it, the strategy will likely be replicated, and we are going to become a much dumber country because of it."

Arceneanux's full column is available at this link.

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