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douglas9

(4,474 posts)
Mon Mar 13, 2023, 07:48 AM Mar 2023

Florida book bans are not a hoax

For months, Popular Information has documented how thousands of books have been removed from the shelves of Florida school libraries or have otherwise been made unavailable to Florida students. These actions were taken in response to new laws and regulations championed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R). But last week, DeSantis held a media event where he complained about the "leftist activists’ hoax of empty library bookshelves."

DeSantis claimed it was all a "false political narrative."

During the press conference, DeSantis falsely claimed that a video of empty book shelves recorded by former Duval County substitute teacher Brian Covey was a "hoax," noting that Covey was fired. It's true that Covey lost his job for recording the video, but the video was not a hoax.

A spokesperson for Duval County Public Schools (DCPS), Tracy Pierce, told Popular Information in February that the empty shelves in Covey’s video once housed “the fiction titles” in the school media center, but all those titles were removed pending review by a media specialist. That review was mandated by a "curriculum transparency" law signed by DeSantis last year.

Many schools in Duval County, including Mandarin Middle School, where Covey worked, do not have a media specialist. So the process is taking a long time. According to the most recent data released by DCPS, just 10,000 of the 1.6 million titles in Duval County schools were approved for student use. That means more than 99% of the books in the DCPS system remain inaccessible to students.

https://popular.info/p/florida-book-bans-are-not-a-hoax

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lark

(24,164 posts)
1. Farenheit Ron451 has a lot in common with hs mentor. Every time his mouth opens, lies come out.
Mon Mar 13, 2023, 07:55 AM
Mar 2023

Every thing he says is a total partisan lie.

Joinfortmill

(16,425 posts)
2. Can the U.S. Department of Education do anything to stop this?
Mon Mar 13, 2023, 08:21 AM
Mar 2023

My guess is not much, but maybe someone at DU can offer some guidance here.

Phoenix61

(17,649 posts)
3. Honestly, at this point, it's better if they don't.
Mon Mar 13, 2023, 11:15 AM
Mar 2023

DeSatan would love nothing more than to whom he about federal over-reach. I’m somewhat inclined to thin that was his goal for this in the first place. Set himself up as the “I support the parent” and those “bed, evil Dems support the federal government coming in and taking over our schools.

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