DeSantis Proposes Law Based on Texas Abortion Ban That Would Target Teaching of Critical Race Theory - U.S. News & World Report

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced legislation Wednesday that would allow parents to sue school districts that they believe are teaching students critical race theory and accused school districts of not following state law that prohibits its teaching.

“Sometimes the school districts don't always follow it,” he said at a press conference Wednesday. “So we will be including in this legislation giving parents a private right of action to be able to enforce the prohibition on CRT and they get to cover attorney fees when they prevail.”

The mechanism behind the law evokes the recently passed abortion restriction in Texas, which placed enforcement not in the hands of the state but in the hands of private citizens. That enforcement scheme has, by design, made it extremely difficult to challenge such laws in court, despite the fact that they may even infringe upon constitutionally protected rights.

“There will be a fortified ability for the state Department of Education to hold people accountable, but honestly, the parents know best what’s going on and they're in the best position to be able to do it,” DeSantis said at the briefing. “Here’s the thing, a lot of times these people will fear lawsuits more than a fine from the state Department of Education because when you do a lawsuit you get discovery and you are subject to that. And when they say they're not doing CRT and then you have all this information showing that they are doing it, it really is an uncomfortable position for them.”

“I think that gives parents the ability to go in and ensure our state standards are being followed,” DeSantis said.

In addition to allowing parents to file lawsuits to enforce the prohibition of critical race theory, the “Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees Act,” which DeSantis called the “Stop W.O.K.E. Act,” would also defund money for K-12 or higher education going to consultants focused on critical race theory and ban concepts of critical race theory from employee training in schools.

In June, the Florida Department of Education approved DeSantis’ request to restrict how American history can be taught by, among other things, banning critical race theory, which is an academic framework positing that race and racial inequality are present in all aspects of American life – from health care to education to criminal justice to climate change.

According to investigations by a handful of news outlets in the Sunshine State, critical race theory is not being taught by school districts in the state. In fact, nationally, 56% of students surveyed reported that they had opportunities to discuss race and racism "sometimes or a great deal" at school, according to a recent report from the nonpartisan America's Promise Alliance, an education organization that partnered with its research arm, the Boston University-affiliated Center for Promise, GradNation, an organization that advocates for higher graduation rates, and others. Only about 3 in 5 students reported that their school curriculum represented non-white communities "sometimes or a great deal."

DeSantis’ proposal is just the latest in a series of GOP-driven campaigns against critical race theory – a culture war issue they’re attempting to capitalize on in the run-up to the 2022 midterm elections in order to, among other things, draw white suburban women back to the Republican Party.

His proposal is also the latest in a series of high-profile legislative pitches by governors that seek to put enforcement mechanisms in the hands of private citizens.

Earlier this week, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, pledged to create a new law allowing private citizens to sue anyone making or selling assault rifles – a proposal that mirrored the novel mechanism of a controversial measure banning nearly all abortions in the state of Texas.

The Texas abortion ban, known as S.B. 8, bars abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, which typically occurs around week six of a pregnancy – before many women know they are pregnant. The law places the enforcement of the ban not in the hands of the state but in the hands of private citizens, who can sue anyone who aids a woman in getting an abortion for at least $10,000 in damages.

The back-to-back proposals are a sure sign of what some legal experts have recently predicted – a slew of similar bills using the same mechanism to target any number of rights and issues privileged by both the left and the right.

source: https://www.usnews.com/news/education-news/articles/2021-12-15/desantis-proposes-law-based-on-texas-abortion-ban-that-would-target-teaching-of-critical-race-theory-in-florida

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