UNTHINKABLE: DeSantis Florida education policies lead to rejection of Holocaust textbooks

 The following is an except of a post from the site Occupy Democrats (saw in 14.May.2023).

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s war with anything he personally judges to be “woke” has had unconscionable consequences — with the latest obscene development being the diminishment of the Holocaust by rejecting books that the state now considers too “woke.”

The Florida Department of Education rejected two newly-released textbooks on the Holocaust for use in Florida high school classrooms. Additionally, the Department forced at least one other textbook to alter a study question about the Hebrew Bible to meet Floridian standards.

By rejecting the book Modern Genocides and an online learning course titled History of the Holocaust, Florida just made it more difficult for students to absorb the depth of the horrors of the Holocaust.

Why did Florida reject the works? The answer is as important as the news of the ban.

Florida rejected Modern Genocides and the online course because they included an analysis or discussion of “special topics” prohibited by the state.

The state lists such “special topics” as “social justice” and “critical race theory.”

Most damningly and most tellingly, the state did not release any information as to which special topics were violated nor how the books violated the special topic mandate.

Thus, Floridians are left in the dark as to whether teaching anything about the Holocaust is now considered too “woke” for innocent Floridian young adults.

Of course, some of this was predictable.

Any serious study of the Holocaust inherently focuses on how quickly large numbers of people can turn on marginalized groups, particularly Jews, as we are experiencing in this country right now.

Moreover, the subject cannot be taught without covering the dangers of hyper-nationalism, and fascism.

And ultimately, “Never Forget,” is premised upon the demand that all of humanity deserves dignity, respect, and understanding.

It requires all people to accept and embrace life in a heterogenous public and reject the hatred that divides us, whether it’s anti-Semitism, racism, or bias against LGBTQ+ people or new immigrants.

The list, of course, is not exhaustive.

But now, all of the above is considered “woke” in MAGA America, headquartered in Governor Ron DeSantis’s head (at least with regard to Florida).

Thus, not only are Florida high school students more susceptible to “forgetting” the horrors of the Holocaust, it’s possible Floridian teens will not learn of it at all, or will only hear a sanitized version, which may ultimately prove more dangerous.

This would be a crisis at any point — but America is acutely vulnerable right now.

The anti-Defamation League published photos in December 2020 of Proud Boys wearing tee-shirts emblazoned with 6MJWNE: “Six Million Jews Were Not Enough,” and, of course, we know that some members of the Proud Boys were convicted for seditious conspiracy on January 6th, attempting to steal a “MAGA-Trump” win.

There is a horrifying and direct tie between anti-Semitism of the most sadistic type and the America First movement, led by Trump and, perhaps even more strongly, by Ron DeSantis.

(Even the phrase “America First” has historical roots in anti-Semitism.)

And now Florida is rejecting books on the Holocaust because the subject cannot be taught without emphasizing the need for tolerance of diversity, without teaching the beauty of empathy, and the benefits of inclusiveness.

These words and ideas are anathema in DeSantis’s Florida, words that are no longer even words, just “DEI” or “woke.”

It would be a bigger surprise if the books weren’t banned.

Tellingly, The Jerusalem Post reports that one book did make it through, a book intended for 6th to 8th graders. But Florida forced the publishers to alter a study question contained within the book because it utilized two words that make DeSantis uncomfortable.

“According to state documents, the book’s original version included a question for students reading, ‘What social justice issues are included in the Hebrew Bible?’”

“That was altered to an approved version that replaced the phrase ‘social justice issues’ with the term ‘key principles.’ The state’s rationale for the change was that the original phrasing used ‘Politically charged language when referencing the Hebrew Bible.’”

No serious argument can be made that “social justice issues” can be equated with “key principles.”

Social justice is the key principle and students should be forced to identify the different means by which injustices are placed on people.

That is how we learn.

But in Ron DeSantis’s Florida, students will “learn” what Ron DeSantis wants them to learn.

It is just as clear that DeSantis doesn’t believe that learning the true underpinnings and the horrific outcomes of the Holocaust is a high enough priority to risk putting some “DEI” in Floridian kids’ heads.

Better to leave it out.

If students received a thorough and accurate review of the Holocaust, they would instantly recognize that some of the changes happening in their state mirror the early stages of what happened in Germany.

We were told, “Never Forget.” Many of us will not.

DeSantis’s answer is to “Never let on,” while he goes about fundamentally changing Florida with ambitions to have the rest of the country follow.

Reach me at jmiciak@yahoo.com, @JasonMiciak