May 06, 2024 18:00:00

Florida passes law requiring kindergarteners to learn about the 'negative history of communism'

Mao Zedong, the leader and spiritual pillar of the Chinese Communist Party,

is considered the deadliest individual in history for leading the Cultural Revolution, which is said to have claimed tens of millions of lives. It has been reported that the state of Florida in the United States has enacted a law making it mandatory to teach the history of communism in public schools, including kindergartens.

DeSantis signs bill; Kindergartners get history of communism
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/04/17/desantis-signs-bill-mandating-kindergartners-learn-history-of-communism/

DeSantis signs bill requiring teaching of history of communism | wtsp.com
https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/politics/desantis-communism-school-curriculum-legislation-hialeah/67-0d3a95a9-3e9e-44db-8fc8-fa601b65c300

Florida's Communism Bill SB 1264: What it Means for Students - jkinfonews.com
https://jkinfonews.com/floridas-communism-bill/

On April 17, 2024, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill called 'History of Communism' (SB 1264), which makes it mandatory for public schools to teach the history of communism to students in kindergarten through 12th grade (equivalent to the third year of high school in Japan).

The bill was passed by a vote of 106 to 7 during the 2024 state legislative session. Now that the governor has signed it into law, the history of communism will become a compulsory subject in Florida public schools starting in the 2026-2027 school year.

The curriculum must be age- and developmentally appropriate, and classes will cover communist events, tactics used by communists, and the history of communism in America.

The curriculum would also be required to include 'communist atrocities committed outside the United States,' with specific references listed in the law including 'the Cultural Revolution in the People's Republic of China' and 'the Cuban Communist Party and guerrilla forces across Latin America.'

'We will not allow our students to live in ignorance or be indoctrinated by communist apologists in our schools. On the contrary, we will ensure that Florida's students are taught the truth about the evil and danger of communism. Only the truth will set us free,' Governor DeSantis said at a press conference.

Florida, located at the southern tip of the US mainland, is home to many immigrants who have fled communist regimes in Latin America, including Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. For many people living in this region, human rights violations, political oppression, and the lack of basic freedoms are not just something they read about in textbooks, but are a deep trauma they have experienced firsthand, and they consider the fight against communist ideology a mission born from their own personal experiences.

The bill's signing ceremony, held on April 17, coincided with the failed 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, in which U.S.-backed forces invaded Cuba in an attempt to topple the Communist regime led by Fidel Castro.

On the other hand, some have questioned whether a law that makes education content that clearly opposes a specific political system will lead to fair education, and some are confused about teaching the history of communism to kindergarteners.Under the current Florida education system, students do not learn about communism in history classes until the seventh grade (first year of junior high school).

Rep. Ashley Gantt, who voted against the bill, told Congress, 'The word 'brainwashing' is being thrown around a lot, but we need to first get a strong curriculum and give students the ability to understand world politics in a comprehensive way.'