The Death Of Civic Liberty: DeSantis Hammers Another Nail In The Coffin

On January 24th of 2024, the Board of Governors, hand-picked by Ron DeSantis, voted and approved replacing the standard sociology curriculum at public Florida colleges with the new Introductory Survey to 1877 to the core course options for social sciences. 

This is just an ordinary day in the Sunshine State as DeSantis executes another one of his "anti-woke" moves in Florida education. Florida education commissioner and DeSantis supporter Manny Díaz even claimed that "Sociology has been hijacked by left-wing activists and no longer serves its intended purpose as a general knowledge course for students." Which is, of course, a gross misunderstanding of sociology and the education taught at Florida public colleges.

Sociology itself is defined as "the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior." The entire purpose of teaching sociology and having it placed as a core class is that students can learn and better understand differences in social behavior, differences in societies and cultures, and reasons for social differences. Sociology teaches that all human behavior is influenced by the community people belong to. We are who we are because we lived in a particular area with a certain group during one specific era. Sociology helps us relate and understand behaviors different from our own or what we see.

The average college student only has limited worldly experiences, typically growing up in similar areas and going to university within their society, even if it's in another state. Sociology forces them to take another perspective on other cultures and people whose lives are built on a different foundation than their own. And America, one of the most diverse countries in the world, has plenty of people who were born and raised in different cultures, and having a basic understanding of sociology can lead to more compassion and empathy.

Removing sociology as a core class and replacing it with a United States history course of the governor's choosing is a quick slip in breaching the liberty of education. African American studies have already been banned in Florida high schools, rejecting the proposal of an advanced placement course that teaches African American studies, despite it being a crucial part of American history and how we interact as a society regarding race.

This close surveillance and tight grip on education is detrimental to public schools and students everywhere, robbing them of the opportunity to learn and better understand societies different from their own. Removing what others may deem an uncomfortable conversation, such as race or different societies, doesn't suddenly make it disappear. It just leaves your students uneducated, and students of other races and cultures left isolated within their community.

The "Parental Rights In Education" bill, widely known as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, banned African American studies and removed sociology as a core class. These are all strikes against civic liberty in education through unjust governmental interference. This is all a continuation of DeSantis' goal of removing any discussion of race, gender, or sexuality in public education. Removing sociology as a core class is another nail in the coffin of civil liberty.

Strike Out, 

Rameen Naviwala

Boca Raton

Rameen Naviwala is a content writer for Strike Magazine Boca. A water sign that enjoys rom-coms and reading melodramatic novels, she spends most of her time with headphones on and scribbling down whatever thought comes to mind. You can reach her at rameen.naviwala@outlook.com.