We've written about this controversy on several occasions already, siding with historical facts and Florida's curriculum working group over the smears perpetrated by the Vice President, the Left in general, and the 'news' media. What's been astounding to me is the extent to which some Republicans have been wiling to amplify the attack, or at least lend credence its premise. I understand why figures like Harris, other Democrats, leftist activists, and their journo class allies would be eager to whip up a racially-divisive faux 'outrage' over nothing, in order to paint the state of Florida as governed by ignorant, racist troglodytes. They've been doing this for years, especially since Gov. Ron DeSantis defied their incorrect conventional wisdom on pandemic policies. As we noted recently, these critics will never forgive DeSantis for being right. So-called progressives' motives for assailing the Sunshine State, and DeSantis by extension, are as obvious as they are appalling.
I want to be more careful about calling into question the motives of some conservatives and Republicans -- specifically black members of the movement and party -- who've abetted this narrative. Others have pointed out that several of the pilers-on are either running against DeSantis in the 2024 primary, or have endorsed other candidates in the race. I don't want to believe that some of these figures would be willing to embrace poisonous, left-wing, racial mendacity simply because it might inflict some fleeing damage upon the DeSantis campaign. That would be extremely cynical and short-sighted. I can also understand why black Americans, regardless of political stripe, would be uniquely and deservedly sensitive about how certain painful and disgraceful elements of our history are discussed and taught to the next generation. For instance, I'm open to the idea that perhaps we should be extra careful about how the word 'benefit' is employed in any scholarly examination of slavery.
But that's not what's going on here. What's going on is bad-faith partisans deciding to loudly claim that Florida's new social studies curriculum teaches that slavery actually benefited slaves. The scope of how grotesquely unfair and unhinged this mischaracterization is becomes clear upon reading the 216-page document itself -- one sentence of which makes a minor but historically-accurate point about some enslaved people attaining skills that allowed them to purchase their own freedom or earn a living elsewhere after escaping their bondage. These individuals creating 'benefits' for their own advancement, DeSantis has explained, happened in spite of slavery, not because of it. Several black members of the curriculum board have aggressively defended their work, with Dr. William Allen highlighting that it was all done openly and transparently, with robust opportunities for public comment and input.
Recommended
Others have pointed out that various historical accounts have taught the very same lesson, often using very similar framing and verbiage. A prominent encyclopedia. The Library of Congress and the National Parks Service. The College Board's AP African-American history syllabus (which was the subject of a separate firestorm in Florida, unrelated to the accurate teaching on this point). And a famed Pulitzer-winning historian:
One must also ask whether David Hackett Fischer is just a right-wing propagandist? pic.twitter.com/zZrMGh13Tn
— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) July 30, 2023
In other words, this relatively tangential truth is both correct and well-established. Why, then, would Sen. Tim Scott breathe oxygen into the Left's dishonest framing of Florida's curriculum? Why would Rep Byron Donalds repeat the notion that his own state's framework 'features' the "benefit" line, when the intentionally-misleading featuring is being propagated by the Vice President and her ideological henchmen? (For what it's worth, Donalds appears to have somewhat walked back his criticism, which was framed relatively tepidly in the first place, and Scott has started dinging Harris on the issue, too). And why in the world would apparently honorable men like Congressmen Wesley Hunt and John James, Republicans from Texas and Michigan, respectively, invent this mind-boggling "net benefit" fabrication -- which is so brazenly untrue that even Harris didn't attempt it? This, sadly, is propaganda:
.@RonDeSantis, #1: slavery was not CTE! Nothing about that 400 years of evil was a “net benefit” to my ancestors. #2: there are only five black Republicans in Congress and you’re attacking two of them.
— John James (@JohnJamesMI) July 28, 2023
My brother in Christ… 🤦🏾♂️ if you find yourself in a deep hole put the shovel… https://t.co/9DGZw4BI0o
As the direct descendent of a slave, I have a hard time understanding Governor DeSantis’ position that transferrable skills learned in bondage are somehow a net benefit. https://t.co/XNj5nkhEQP
— Wesley Hunt (@WesleyHuntTX) July 28, 2023
Where on earth did the "net benefit" language come from? I'd like to know. It's certainly not from the Florida curriculum, nor is it from anything DeSantis or the curriculum panelists have said. It's profoundly disappointing to see anyone on the center-right offering any credibility to this hit job, let alone somehow making it worse. This is true regardless of who anyone may be supporting for president. When the Left goes after a conservative unfairly, conservatives should rally around that person to defeat the lie or injustice. We've seen this with Donald Trump, with Nikki Haley, with Tim Scott, and with many others. And why does this matter? Because when conservatives give the Left cover, it allows the 'news' media to avoid substance and ostensibly confirm the gist of the controversy by arguing that "even so-and-so" agrees with the criticisms:
As noted by @ZaidJilani, this is mission accomplished. Now the media can ignore the actual facts of the smear and just point to it being bipartisan as evidence of its legitimacy. That was the entire purpose. https://t.co/gSysP2dz1O
— AG (@AGHamilton29) July 30, 2023
This further emboldens the Left to push even harder and become even more shameless:
.@TheBlackCaucus is asking @TheJusticeDept and @usedgov to review FL’s African American history curriculum to see if it violates federal law.
— Jeremy Redfern (@JeremyRedfernFL) July 27, 2023
The federal government wants to prevent teaching our nation’s history.
Will they investigate @CollegeBoard and https://t.co/VjMNC6QFgk? pic.twitter.com/p3NS1KVGcI
They will just keep lying, with an assist from some Republicans. It's unacceptable. Finally, since I offered some 'tough love' critiques of the DeSantis campaign thus far in a lengthy analysis last week, I'll say that his energy and approach over the last few days have the makings of an effective pivot. He should be doing more interviews like his in-depth exchange with Megyn Kelly. His willingness to put in the time and effort on retail politics is welcome and necessary. And his sharp, focused speech at a major GOP banquet in Iowa was reportedly the most warmly-received of the entire field's for good reason:
🔥🔥🔥 FULL SPEECH: Governor Ron DeSantis addresses the Iowa GOP Lincoln Dinner 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/fk4zc4YwuN
— Never Back Down (@NvrBackDown24) July 29, 2023
UPDATE - I addressed this controversy on television this morning:
Join the conversation as a VIP Member