Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed the civic literacy education bill, SB 146, that received unanimous bipartisan support in the State’s House and Senate.
What We Know:
- After signing previous legislation last week intending to improve civic literacy, many of his fellow Republicans were shocked when DeSantis’ veto statement was released. In the statement, DeSantis said, “The proposed bill seeks to further so-called ‘action civics’ but does so in a way that risks promoting the preferred orthodoxy of two particular institutions.” Senator Jeff Brandes responded that he has no idea what that statement is supposed to mean and believes it to be purposefully vague.
- The bill’s design was to increase the opportunity for civic engagement by involving youth in more aspects of society, government, and the political system. Primarily, it would have taken a pre-existing program at the University of Southern Florida (USF) called the Civic Fellow Program for high school students and established a new program that incorporated college credit for participation. Christina Pushaw, a spokesperson for DeSantis, said he feared the bill would bring political indoctrination and activism into classrooms.
- Some of the wording used in DeSantis’ statement has caused people to believe he is referencing a National Review article that called for him to veto SB 146. The piece warned that the bill would allow Critical Race Theory to find its way back into school curriculums.
“I think this is part of a larger political agenda to demonize our universities, demonize education…I’m stunned and saddened by that. I think his veto really undermines public confidence in government and elected leaders’ ability to do what’s right for the people they serve,” responded Representative Ben Diamond, who sponsored SB 146 in the House.
- The Civic Fellow Program began at USF in 2016. It has been a partnership between the university and the Florida YMCA with significant input from the state legislature. The intention was to give young individuals a way to understand how to tackle problems in their own communities. Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan, a USF political science professor and founding director of the program, stated, “Our approach has always been to be bipartisan, to be exposing students to a variety of viewpoints. There’s workshops on communication and working with people from different views.”
Thankfully the funding for the Civic Fellow Program remains intact despite DeSantis’ veto.
