TALLAHASSEE, FL—A new bill would add an anti-communism curriculum to Florida schools, creating a communist task force of Governor-appointed officials. The bill faced Democratic resistance, with liberal lawmakers calling it divisive and "hurtful".
HB 1349, co-sponsored by Republican House Reps. Chuck Brannan and James Buchanan, require an "age-appropriate" curriculum on the history of, and growing threat of, communism. The bill would create a Governor-appointed communism task force within the Department of Education, assigned to develop an anti-communism curriculum taught from Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade.
"It simply aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of communism's impact, not as indoctrination or fear-mongering, but as a means of acknowledging its role in victimizing, torturing, murdering, and displacing millions of people in the past century," Rep. Brannan said in Tuesday's House Pre-K Appropriations Subcommittee. "That's what this bill is about,"
John Labriola, of the conservative group Christian Family Coalition, spoke in favor of the bill, saying, "Communism continues to be viewed positively by a significant portion of the U.S. population, especially young people. 28 percent of Generation Z have a favorable view of communism, 30 percent view Marxism in the same matter, and only a third understand that the Chinese communist party killed more people than Nazism," he said, referencing a 2021 Washington Examiner article.
"Communism in all of its manifestations is a Godless, tyrannical, murderous system that has killed tens of millions, possibly hundreds of millions of people across the globe," Labriola said.
To assist people fleeing from communist regimes, President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Refugee Relief Act in 1953. This authorized nearly 200,000 special non-quota immigrant visas for refugees from communist countries, including West Germany, Turkey, Italy, Greece, and China. Later, the U.S. accepted refugees from the war-torn Hungary and communist Cuba.
"It's never too early to teach our children the atrocities of communism," Republican Rep. Alina Garcia said in support of the bill. She explained her hatred of communism, as she and her parents escaped communist Cuba when she was a child. "When we don't learn from our history we are destined to repeat it, and there will be nowhere to go, God forbid, if this country ever falls into the hands of communism,"
Democratic Rep. Patricia Williams strongly opposed the bill, wondering why anti-communist teachings are to be implemented but not black history teachings. She then claimed it would create "divisiveness" in the classrooms.
"We have several kids that can't read on grade level, and we want to put something in the classroom to divide them: hatred," she said, turning to her point on the "removal" of black history teachings in schools. "It's hurtful, it's very hurtful...you hypocrites,"
In a 10-2 vote, the bill passed committee. It will now head to the Education and Employment Committee, its final stop before the House Floor.
