Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis introduced a bill Wednesday that would prohibit any state funding of public schools that teach critical race theory as well as ban private companies from nesting the racialized framework in staff trainings.
Coined the Stop the Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (WOKE) Act, the legislation is intended to “give businesses, employees, children and families tools to fight back against woke indoctrination.” It would codify the Florida Department of Education’s ban on critical race theory instruction in K-12 schools, as well as “strengthen its enforcement authority,” according to the memo explaining the bill. Although it did not specify public or private, school districts, colleges, and universities would be forbidden from hiring consultants to enact equity, diversity, and inclusion curriculum changes to the school system.
“In Florida we are taking a stand against the state-sanctioned racism that is critical race theory,” DeSantis said in a press release. “We won’t allow Florida tax dollars to be spent teaching kids to hate our country or to hate each other. We also have a responsibility to ensure that parents have the means to vindicate their rights when it comes to enforcing state standards. Finally, we must protect Florida workers against the hostile work environment that is created when large corporations force their employees to endure CRT-inspired ‘training’ and indoctrination.”
According to the “consequences” part of the memo, employees, parents, and students would be entitled to “private right of action” under the measure.
“As the daughter of Cuban exiles who fled from Marxist ideology, I am proud to stand alongside Governor DeSantis and support this proposed legislation that will put an end to wokeness that is permeating our schools and workforce,” Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nuñez wrote. “This important legislation gives students and employees the resources they need to fight back against discrimination, critical race theory and indoctrination. I’m proud to stand alongside the Governor not only of the free state of Florida but the woke-free state of Florida.”
In March, the governor proposed investing $17 million in pandemic-related federal funding into the state’s education infrastructure specifically to bolster civics curricula with “foundational concepts” and not “unsanctioned narratives like critical race theory.”
DeSantis’s new bill comes after he vetoed S.B. 146, a bill on “civic literacy education” that passed in the Florida legislature, in July. While advocates claimed that it promoted civic excellence, critics warned that it contained no protections against politicized “action civics” and would open the door for critical race theory to seep into Florida curricula.