Faith in Florida is taking a stand against the new Black History curriculum in their state, issued by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. The statewide coalition has committed to teaching comprehensive Black history through the usage of its new toolkit program.
The nonprofit is now offering free educational “toolkits” to faith leaders so that they can teach their congregants unrestricted African American history. Faith in Florida reports the toolkit “explores the origin, impact and effects of institutional and systemic racism and the impact of faith and spirituality on our survival and progression as a people.”
In the face of DeSantis’ new mandate surrounding the teaching of Black History, the nonprofit hopes to include at least 1,000 separate leaders to use the toolkit in their houses of worship. The mission statement on Faith in Florida’s website explicitly calls out DeSantis. It reads, “The state legislature [has] resorted to policing Black existence. This is precisely why Faith in Florida is taking a stance. We will not be legislated into acquiescence, allowing Black history to be erased and Black voices to be silenced. We have committed to teaching Black history through the lens of truth, not through a lens that is exclusionary, revisionist, racist, and reeks of fascism.”
According to NPR, Pastor Ross Pierre of Greater New Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in Miami signed up for the free kit.
Pierre said, “The goal is definitely through preaching. Definitely, through our youth ministry, we have spiritual enrichment classes we teach. And we’ll definitely use the toolkit for that.”
Another Reverend, Richard Dames of Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church in Boynton Beach, signed up and said he’d be using them to teach during his Sunday School classes.
“So what we’re going to do due to the fact that our Sunday school is our teaching hour. We’re going to use our Sunday school period to teach this curriculum.”
The kits consist of eleven units separated into an easy-to-comprehend sectioned course progression. The units include coursework in the Black narrative, the history of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, Black Lives Matter protests, and even mass incarceration.
