After the state Board of Education voted unanimously on Thursday to ban critical race theory from being taught in Florida’s classrooms, Sen. Bobby Powell issued the following statement:
“Black history is much more than Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks and Mary McCloud Bethune, all highlighted by the Governor during Black History Month last February. Critical race theory highlights the uncomfortable truth embedded in the history of our nation and when properly taught, equips students with the academic foundation to identify and analyze the causes of societal inequality in their own lives, their communities and our country,” said Senator Bobby Powell Jr. (D-Palm Beach) Chairman of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus.
“It is meant to break down the walls of division, not build them higher. Unfortunately, unification is a concept Governor DeSantis has failed to grasp. To him, this well-established academic theory is a means to an end, a way to deepen the distrust and untruths his candidacy rests on. Like the anti-protest bill, the sanctuary cities bill, and the crackdown on voting rights, his critical race theory ban underscores his talent at conjuring ‘solutions’ to problems that do not exist in Florida. It’s a corrosive political agenda meant to distract and divert from the real issues Floridians elected him to tackle, which nearly three years later he’s still trying to ignore.”