Travel Advisory Issued By NAACP Cites DeSantis' Attacks On FL Blacks

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This includes House Bill 7, the Individual Freedom bill, which DeSantis refers to as the “Stop WOKE Act.” Among other things, the legislation signed into law in March barred the College Board’s new African American History Advanced Placement curriculum in public high schools due to racial identity topics.

The bill also banned the teaching of critical race theory, a university-level academic concept that looks at how the legacy of enslavement and racism has shaped the country’s public policy, legal system, zoning laws, voting districts, education systems and fair access to jobs and housing.

DeSantis also signed legislation prohibiting colleges and universities from using public money on diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

The NAACP is equally concerned about the implications of DeSantis’ Parental Rights in Education bills, House Bill 1557 and House Bill 1467, which permits parents to challenge classroom materials and library books based on depictions of violence, sex and blatant racism that they feel aren’t appropriate for their students.

As a result, well-known books by Black authors or books with Black themes have been banned including Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison’s book, “The Bluest Eye,” “Out of Darkness” by Ashley Hope Pérez, “Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates ” by Jonah Winter, “Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop” by Alice Faye Duncan, “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas and “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander and “The 1619 Project,” a long-form journalism effort by writers from The New York Times and The New York Times Magazine focused on subjects of slavery and the founding of the United States.

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Yvette Lewis, president of the Hillsborough County chapter of the NAACP, was among the state leaders who urged the national NAACP to issue the travel advisory.

She noted that said some parents even attempted to ban Harper Lee’s classic novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” from schools due to discussions of race relations in the book.

“It’s difficult to understand. What did this book have in it that was so offensive that would make you say, ‘Pull it from the shelf?'” she asked.

In all, 566 books have been banned in Florida public schools since the passage of the bill. In response, the NAACP distributed 10,000 copies of banned books to 25 predominantly Black communities across the Florida in collaboration with the American Federation of Teachers’s Reading Opens the World program.

Among the communities receiving books was Hillsborough County, which the Hillsborough County chapter of the NAACP used to officially open the Freedom Library on May 10 at Beulah Baptist Institutional Church, 1006 W. Cypress St., Tampa.

The shelves of the library will be filled with books on Black issues that have been banned from some Florida public schools, said Lewis.

While this is a step in the right direction, Johnson said it’s a pale effort when compared with the ramifications of these new Florida laws. He’s calling on Blacks around the country to make sure DeSantis never sees the inside of the Oval Office.

“Let me be clear. Failing to teach an accurate representation of the horrors and inequalities that Black Americans have faced and continue to face is a disservice to students and a dereliction of duty to all,” said Johnson. “Under the leadership of Gov. Desantis, the state of Florida has become hostile to Black Americans and in direct conflict with the democratic ideals that our union was founded upon. He should know that democracy will prevail because its defenders are prepared to stand up and fight. We’re not backing down, and we encourage our allies to join us in the battle for the soul of our nation.”

The NAACP said Black Floridians have also been placed at a disadvantage by DeSantis and his Republican Legislature due to restrictive voting laws that have resulted in a disproportionate number of Black residents being arrested for voter fraud and congressional and legislative redistricting that eliminated districts with Black majorities, reducing the opportunity for Blacks to be elected to office.

Johnson said the travel advisory was initially proposed to the board of directors by the NAACP’s Florida State Conference due to what the conference described as “unrelenting attacks on fundamental freedoms.” In March, the Florida NAACP voted unanimously to issue a travel advisory.

It took more than a month of discussion before the national board decided to follow suit and issue its unprecedented travel advisory.

“Once again, hate-inspired state leaders have chosen to put politics over people. Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida have engaged in a blatant war against principles of diversity and inclusion and rejected our shared identities to appeal to a dangerous, extremist minority,” said NAACP Board of Directors Chairman Leon Russell.

“We will not allow our rights and history to be held hostage for political grandstanding,” Russell said. “The NAACP proudly fights against the malicious attacks in Florida against Black Americans. I encourage my fellow Floridians to join in this fight to protect ourselves and our democracy.”

Johnson said the timing of the travel advisory was intentional. This week, DeSantis’ campaign staff began setting up campaign headquarters in downtown Tallahassee in anticipation of his run for president. DeSantis is expected to file paperwork declaring his candidacy in Miami on Wednesday.

Calling the travel advisory a “stunt,” DeSantis said he stands behind the newly passed laws that he said provide protections for students who should not be instructed to “feel guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” due to their race, color, sex or national origin.

Lewis countered that this was never the intent of the Black history lessons routinely taught in schools around the country for years.

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“It’s never meant to make you feel guilty. It’s meant to help you understand and educate yourself on what actually happened,” she said.

As for barring the AP course, DeSantis said the College Board, responsible for administering standardized tests like the SAT, shouldn’t be “pushing an agenda” on students.

He said Florida law requires public schools to teach students about the history of African Americans, including the enslavement experience, and help them develop an “understanding of the ramifications of prejudice, racism and stereotyping on individual freedoms.”

But the College Board’s AP course has a political agenda, he said.

“That’s the wrong side of the line for Florida standards,” DeSantis said. “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.”

In response to the travel advisory, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, the city’s first openly gay mayor, sent out a tweet assuring visitors of all races and sexual preferences that DeSantis’ chilly reception doesn’t extend to the city of Tampa.

“As mayor of Tampa, I can absolutely assure anyone and everyone considering a visit or move to Tampa that they will be welcomed with open arms,” she said. “Diversity and inclusion are central to what makes Tampa one of America’s greatest and friendliest cities. That will never change, regardless of what happens in Tallahassee.”

Yvette Lewis, president of the Hillsborough County chapter of the NAACP, and the Rev. Alan Harris, pastor of the Beulah Baptist Institutional Church, celebrate the opening of the Freedom Library.

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