The Death of “Woke” Culture: How Florida’s Attack on Progressive Policies has Created a History Curriculum that Indoctrinates the Youth

Abstract

In the United States, state governments determine laws and policies regarding public education, creating disparities in content and standards across the country. Several conservative states, including Florida, have moved political battles into the classroom by pushing their own agendas into history curricula. Fears amongst Republican lawmakers and their constituents about progressive “woke” culture has been the foundation of attacks against equity and diversity, creating massive holes in what is allowed to be taught to students. In a state where educational decisions are chosen by right-wing political figures and parents, as opposed to the educators themselves, the future generations are being taught a whitewashed, simplified history that steers clear of complex conversations about race, sexuality, and other sensitive difficult historical topics that could potentially cause white students to feel guilty about the past of their country. As a result, the efforts of the conservative party to destroy the perceived “woke” threat from the left has instead created a system of historical manipulation that is indoctrinating the youth in classrooms to believe incomplete, sometimes falsified history that furthers a prejudiced and discriminatory society.