Category: Diversity / Inclusivity
Why it matters 2
This is the second in which I hope will be many future posts by Randy. Please give him some love and support as he starts to feel more comfortable doing posts. Hugs from Scottie.
In the very proclamation of dissent and foundation of a new creation, America
demanded that laws be emplaced for the fair governance of the people. In fact, it was the failure of the British Monarchy to govern with fair laws, to allow representation and fair justice, to abide by a set of laws even, that brought about these ringing words of courage and relative insanity when considering the scope of the argument: “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.”
How bold a statement is that! And yet it is the very foundational argument upon 
which this country called America was founded, and ironic in that the very people of the argument and their following generations have striven mightily to disprove. From the institutions of slavery to Indian Affairs, Rockefellers to Swaggerts, people have sought ways to remove this idea that each of us is created equal and beholden to the laws of the country.
The Rule of Law has been bandied about in one phrase or another since the musings of Plato, if not before. It was Henry de Bracton, a medieval jurist, who is credited with the famous phrase “no man is above the law”. It is quite literally the defining characteristic of a civil society, one which is not governed by the arbitrary ruthlessness of a corrupt power simply doing as it pleases, and the initial downfall of any society as those who would subject others to the law fly in the face of the very same.
America, for all its unwillingness to abide by its own creation, has managed to somewhat self-correct over time, if such things can be considered as correctable. There will always be injustices in the world, but “men of good conscious…” do sooner or later find ways to bring us back from the edge even as generations are squandered and sullied in the process and allow us to muddle down this road. In truth, it is the mark of a healthy governance and populace to ensure the shortest of time between abuse and correction.
As we look upon the actions of Donald Trump, he is in some ways a scape goat. 
Given far more power than he was built to manage and surrounded by sycophants, coat-tail riders and sociopathic anarchists all seeking to rape and pillage their way to the top, he is asked now to answer for grievances he never should have been given the opportunity to incur. I find myself feeling somehow sorry for this spoiled
tantrum throwing delinquent, but even more sorry for a country that must force an acknowledgement that, truly, no man should be above the law. What I fear the most is the generations that will be squandered and sacrificed should we fail. Make no mistake, those who willingly placed a man so ill-prepared and incapable of the job into the highest position of trust and power in the land are perfectly willing to pick over the carcass as this asshole attempts to burn it all to the ground.
Why it Matters
This is a guest post from Randy. As most people here already know Randy is someone I admire greatly. Randy is my online brother and a member of our family. Randy is smart, funny, caring, kind, willing to reach out a hand to those in need while also willing to stand up to protect others. Randy is the kind of guy who if he knew a co-worker had no other way to get to a much needed job during a snow storm he would get up out of his warm bed and go take them to work. And not ask any for doing it. I have asked Randy if he would be a guest author as he has time. He has delighted me with the first two posts of what I hope will be many more. Thank you my brother, Hugs.
Why it Matters
In this era of Blue Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter, even All Lives Matter, the defining characteristic is that the authors, the progenitors of the movement, are trying to indicate to the public that there are folks who do not see the lives of some persons either being in jeopardy, being disenfranchised, being set upon as a second class, being abused. The irreparable loses for some came too early, like the Native Americans, and for others they somehow bought in to the larger idea, others still labor under a “lesser than” status that evidences in odd circumstances when people need someone to blame.
It is easy to use extremes to make points in writing, so I’ll use one now. In the late 1930’s an individual rose to power who realized that it was far far easier to capture the public’s anger and fear through hate and destructive rhetoric. Hate is bred from fear, and Germany recovering from WW1 was reeling through poverty, inflation, low productivity, and a miasma from losing a war. This individual captured that fear with not only an ideal he espoused upon the country but a scapegoat: otherwise said is “this is the ideal, but these are the people for whom to blame for our lot.” It should be noted that an erstwhile general failure in his other pursuits, this individual honed a craft of speaking what people begged to hear in a manner that was convincing enough to overpower the very voice of decency within them.
What did that individual do? He convinced people that it was ok to place a mark of second class on another human being. He convinced people that they should be “segregated” for the good of the countrymen. In time, it went from a fringe movement to the government’s position, and men, women, children were rounded up and “quarantined” for the safety of the citizenry. Some bought into this with a passion, others were put into a position of placing their own lives in peril to not go through with this new government program as their neighbors were taken, were abused, disenfranchised and even killed. Only a sociopath would look upon the truth of this matter with anything but horror, but it’s amazing what people can justify to themselves when their own comfort is on the line, when their own well-being is on the line. That individual, after committing war 
upon his own land, went on to view people in other countries as “lesser than”, as not worthy of existence as neighbors, and went to war with them. The irony learned by the very public this individual used and then abandoned in his bid for power is that they were now only worse off after his blame-game and were forced to face what had been done in their name.
So, why is that relevant today? Anytime, Anytime, Every time we accept a person to be cast as a second-class citizen for no other reason than their very being, we lose. We lost when we decided that Native American Cultures were lesser than. We lost when we decided that African lives, African American lives were lesser than. We lost when we decided that whoever was in power at the moment, however that power was expressed- be it by government, wealth, violence- was the correct arbitrator of a person’s worth as a citizen.
This blog clearly speaks up for those who have felt the abuse of those in power due to their being gay, being trans, being somehow different. Some have looked upon this championing as an acceptable forum for conversation and determination 
of another’s rights and status when said persons have harmed no one and sought only to be genuine to themselves. The false definition of reality seems a favorite of those who seek to justify abuse, and let it be understood that abuse of power is what it is! I see no debate as warranted or even allowed when we seek to determine how another person defines himself. That is their business, and though we may find it uncomfortable for ourselves we have no right to dictate to another who he or she or they express themselves.
I would like to harken back to the very extreme example used earlier in this writing: Declaring a person to be lower class and unworthy of their own personhood, their liberty, is not American, but damn if it isn’t what Americans seem to demand. Excusing and justifying abuses and horrors in the name of being free is antithetical to the very existence of the Constitution, and yet we do it. Over and over again, we accept abuses on others. You want examples? 
Ok, we accept a death knell of school children for the right to sell guns to near anyone. We accept the demand that drag shows be stopped because it violates our own religious beliefs. We are demanding that people exhibit who they are defined to be at birth despite who they genuinely feel themselves to be. We demand that children starve in our public schools so that the wealthiest don’t have to pay a fair tax rate. We demand that children go to school, then declare their well-educated instructors abusing them for allowing them to have an education. We demand that the sick seek to gamble their very lives as they balance eating and health care. And, we demand that the mother give birth to her child no matter how old she is, 
how she became pregnant, the viability of the fetus, the physical and psychological toll it will put on the mother, the financial devastation it will inflict upon her life, even the ability to feed, clothe, educate, and love the child do we still demand she bring it into the world, then we turn our back upon her.
We as a country seem to demand the right to make these decisions for others, to define them, to restrict them, to force them to conform to what we see as comfortable and proper for them, and yet in the near past, especially, have I seen excuse upon excuse for criminal and the worst examples of abuses inflicted upon others. 
These so-called Christians – and I place that lowercase as they seem to refuse to follow the example of the one written as Jesus Christ – refuse to use a common reality, hold themselves accountable, hold others in their politics driven values accountable, and as I mentioned, refuse to do as Christ demands, yet stomp their feet if someone were to live in defiance of those somehow “deeply held religious beliefs”. And, again, harkening back to the earlier extreme example: 1930’s Germany was a very religious country and look at what they allowed for their politics-driven morals and values.
Queer students in Florida are terrified
https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2023/03/queer-students-in-florida-are-terrified/
So are the LGBTQ+ adults. DeathSantis and his maga sycophants have painted target signs on each of us and his violent gang thug enforcers along with the recharged up fundamentalist religious people who feel they have the right to oppress everyone into forcing them to live by the dictates of their religion are making the lives of queer people in Florida miserable. They keep pushing harder and harder to make their way the only way to live. What is acceptable to them is the only acceptable public expression. This is about not allowing any other social public expression than what their church allows them according to their outdated 1950s strict gender role model based on the idea that white Christian men are automatically in charge and women are subservient to them while minorities know their place and stay there. All according to the white males in charge who like it that way. And they use a set of mistranslated writings from 2,500 years ago to back up their demands. I want you to pay attention to what the student says is happening on high school campuses, where conserative right wing teachers / administrators design polices and punishments for queer kids while using those polices to protect themselves from repremand. The student says she has seen teachers mock and out gay kids to parents and laugh about it. Also kids who try to stand up for the queer kids have their own futures placed in jepardy as their transcripts get lost, documents they need lost, and even collage applications no longer approved, or loss recommendations made by the school if they don’t stop speaking out in support of queer kids. Think of that, the change from the days when kids were encouraged to be active in cuases, in socail movements. Hugs
Photo: ShutterstockUnder Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Florida has become a closely-watched epicenter for anti-LGBTQ+ laws – and advocates say queer youth are feeling the impact.
With the passage of sweeping anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, such as the Don’t Say Gay law, gender-affirming care bans, and bathroom restrictions, Florida has become a battleground for queer rights. DeSantis’s anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has continued to exacerbate the issue, leading to concerns among LGBTQ+ advocates that the state is becoming increasingly unwelcoming to queer youth.
————————————————————
“We’re terrified,” Christina Guiriba, a transgender youth advocate, told LGBTQ Nation. “As advocates for the community, we’re very torn. We want to continue this fight.”
Guiriba is the founder of Transcending Adolescence, a Jacksonville-based nonprofit aimed at empowering trans youth.
A trans woman and Florida native who has experienced bullying and physical violence during her childhood, she leads a summer camp called Resilience Retreat for around a dozen trans youth to build their courage and resilience. She wants every participant to leave camp having defined success on their own terms, whether that be finally finding a safe space for the first time or going through with top surgery.
“Seeing a staff full of gender-diverse people that are successful and still alive gave them hope,” she said. Through the power of the outdoors and physical recreation, she hopes to continue to be a voice for “those who are afraid.”
But Guiriba said that many advocates are afraid to continue their work as they find themselves the target of right-wing hate. Transcending Adolescence, in fact, was recently the victim of a doxing attack.
As a result, the organization was forced to adopt stricter security measures such as planning escape routes and installing surveillance cameras and panic buttons. They even hired a private security officer, unable to turn to the Jacksonville police due to their transphobic reputation, such as using deadnames in official police investigations, among other reasons.
But Guiriba isn’t stopping. Her work is becoming increasingly relevant as new research shows how ongoing anti-LGBTQ+ attacks are starting to impact queer youth.
“The consequences are really more dire than even most people would imagine,” Caitlin Viccora, programs manager for healthy & supportive schools at Advocates for Youth, told LGBTQ Nation.
A recent CDC report on youth behavior over the past decade shows record-high levels of depression and suicide risk among teenagers in recent years. The CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey reveals that more than half of LGBTQ+ students have recently experienced declining mental health and more than one in five had a suicide attempt within the past year. Queer female adolescents fared worse compared to males.
In Florida especially, Viccora said the priority for advocates is to set the record straight and clear the air of false information. Parents have a right to know what’s really happening in their child’s classroom without having to rely on the right-wing’s “targeted disinformation campaigns,” Viccora said.
“It’s not just Republicans who are failing to protect LGBTQ+ students,” she added, “A lot of folks are staying silent.”
She urged community members to speak publicly at local school board meetings and fight proposed regulations that impact queer youth. Submitting public comments, organizing to call local officials such as superintendents, or just showing up to the polls to vote are effective ways to protect queer youth.
Queer youth are learning to “shut up and keep their head low”
“Ron DeSantis is a terrifying man,” Iris, a high school senior in Clay County, Florida, who requested to use a different name out of fear of retaliation, told LGBTQ Nation. “[DeSantis] claims to be a Christian but at the basis of Christianity is acceptance and love. Yet he chooses violence and overall bigotry.”
Iris does not identify as queer, but her queer friends would not speak with LGBTQ Nation, citing safety concerns even if they remained anonymous. Instead, they spoke through Iris.
In her previous attempts to speak out, Iris said her school officials claimed to “lose” her documents, opening the possibility of preventing her from graduating high school. She said speaking out would even “jeopardize my college [applications].”
Iris said Gov. DeSantis has created a “hostile environment” for Florida students that enables hatred and punishes those who try speaking out. She recounts an instance where a close male friend dressed as a PowerPuff Girl for Halloween and was viciously bullied during school hours. The bully received no penalty while Iris’ friend was reprimanded for several infractions, one of them being a dress code violation.
In a second instance, she reports that her school principal outed numerous queer kids to their parents. She said the principal was even spotted laughing and mocking the list of students she outed with one of those students’ parents.
This practice is becoming increasingly common across Florida schools, with school administrators developing formal policies to punish or out queer kids to their families.
“Teachers are able to say and do things without consequence,” said Iris, noting that these types of policies serve to primarily protect conservative and right-wing educators.
She added that queer kids are learning that they need to “shut up and keep their head low” in order to survive.
Both Guiriba and Viccora emphasize the importance of remaining positive, continuing their fight to ensure a brighter future for queer youth across the country.
“It’s important for queer people to know they’re not alone,” said Guiriba, also stressing that advocates take the appropriate time to rest. “It’s not easy to find strength.”
“Living as a queer person in America is really scary when you’re looking at headlines,” Viccora said, especially when queer Americans face discrimination and violence at every corner. Despite this, Viccora urges queer youth to remember the “beauty and resiliency” in the simple fact of our existence.
Let’s talk about 8 months of change….
Happening now…
Happening now…
In 1 minute, a senate committee in Kansas will be holding a hearing to ban gender affirming care up to the age of 21.
It is one of the most cruel anti-trans bans in the country.
I will be covering it live. Follow along.
🧵
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You can follow along with me and watch the hearing here:
The bill is SB12.
We are beginning now.
Looks like the bill has been shifted to SB233, which has some differences in penalties.
Aaaand of course we have Chloe Cole.
You’d think if they are swimming in detransitioners they’d be able to find more than the same 5 they bring to every one of these.
Political Detransitioners like Chloe Cole really are the new ex-gays.
They used to trot the ex gays out before each hearing too for bans on gay marriage and conversion therapy.
https://erininthemorn.substack.com/p/political-detransitioners-are-the
"I have to remove my hair with laser hair removal"
(advocates for a bill that will force hundreds of trans amab youth through a male puberty which will result in them having to go through laser hair removal and expensive surgeries as adults)
This guy is testifying from "Mass Resistance."
This organization is responsible for a book called "The Hazards of Homosexuality," a pro-conversion therapy outlet that calls gay people's existance a "public health issue"
Like I said. The new ex gays, folks.
This is one of their main invited testimonies.
See Mass Resistance here:
https://www.massresistance.org/AboutUs.html
And we have our first "the testimony of Jamie Reed" in Washington University at St Louis.
I have a point by point refutation of Jamie.
https://erininthemorn.substack.com/p/missouri-anti-trans-whistleblower
Dr. Gaylyn Perry is speaking not on behalf of any medical organization.
She’s a pulmonologist, not an endocrinologist.
She’s a sleep therapist.
Also she's stating that Europe is "closing its clinics."
Not a single country she is referring to has categorically banned gender affirming care.
From the Alabama lawsuit, relying on Europe helped sink that bill in court:
"No country in Europe has categorically banned gender affirming care"
Now a retired doctor is testifying.
“I’m here to speak the truth about natural law and the truth given to us by our savior.”
This is not medically oriented testimony and his belief in god should have no bearing on the right of parents to make decisions for their kids.
This doctor is using the old 2011 study of "19x suicide rates" among trans people.
This is an inaccurate reading of the Dhejne study, who has specifically come out against people reading it that way:
Essentially, they are comparing a specific high risk group trans people to the general public, and not to trans people with no interventions, and it was also looking at a 30 year retrospective during some of the worst acceptance of trans people in history. (1980s)
A representative of the Kansas American Academy of Pediatrics with 450 physicians in Kansas.
She’s saying that this decision should be between doctors and patients and families.
The ACLU of KS representative is speaking.
"This bill violates the constitutional rights of children, parents, and doctors"
“It places politicians feelings against medical advice of hundreds of thousands of doctors”
"Every state attempting to defend these bills has lost"
“People will die. Families will suffer. The practice of medicine will be compromised.”
“The very care this bill attacks is responsible for my life.”
Another trans person, a trans man, is speaking.
He was on puberty blockers til 17, and took testosterone.
“College was much easier after I had my medical interventions to be my true self.”
“I can’t imagine such a life without them.”
A WPATH Doctor is speaking.
“This bill will directly impact the lives of transgender youth, directly impacting lives. Their blood will be on your hands. This is unethical.”
"For a minor to access gender affirming care, I ensure in collaboration with mental health experts assess the consistent, insistent, and persistent presence of gender dysphoria and require consent from parents" and she talks about all of the hoops patients have to jump through.
Reverend Kayla Simons Wood is speaking on behalf of Kansas Interaction.
Submits testimony from 10 clergy opposing this bill.
“I and many other Christians believe trans people are created in Gods image.”
Beth Oller:
“I provide full spectrum care from babies to end of life and I provide gender affirming care. I am an actual practicing Kansas physician.”
“The majority of people detransition not because they are not trans, but because of violence and difficulties with family”
"We need to listen to their perspective rather than the curated presentation in front of you"
Senator Stephen is asking Dr. Hubbard, a WPATH doctor, a question.
"Ms. Hubbard, Are you telling me the AAP unwaiveringly supports surgical interventions"
Dr. Hubbard: “I would appreciate it if you refer to me as Dr. Hubbard, please.”
Then points out that the treatments are tailored to the individuals.
Questioner: "Can you tell me where from Kansas you received your gender affirming care?"
"I'm not from Kansas…"
Questioner: "Is this the first time you've testified?"
"No…"
Asking Dr Crabs:
"Your testimony was from the 1980s about transgender suicides. So not current. Can I ask you where you practiced?"
"I did not practice here"
"can you verify you had a license in kansas?"
The chair cut her off.
Now a Senator is asking Dr. Beth Oller where she works (one of the people against the bill):
The doctor responds she works in Kansas.
Strongly pointing out that all of the people in support of the bill are coming from out of state.
Now a Senator is asking one of the trans man transitioners if he was given all of the info around his transition.
He answers in the affirmative.
Now they are asking a question of one of the detransitioners,
"Do you believe you were groomed into the decision to transition?"
“I don’t believe in using that word… it’s too divisive…”
This hearing isn't going super well for them.
(They'll probably still vote it through)
ACLU witness:
“I am referring to the 1.3 million doctors that are represented by the medical organizations that support this care.”
This Senator is claiming puberty blockers and HRT are causing early onset cancer.
There’s no evidence of any sort of outbreak of early onset cancer in trans youth.
Asked of the AAP representative if the majority supports gender affirming care in their chapter.
She testifies yes, most of the 450 do.
Now she is asking about the Missouri whistleblower.
“A radical supporter of the far left has blown the whistle”
“Are there other areas of medical practice where the child directs their health care?”
The doctor: “Everything the child is involved in, but the child themselves does not direct gender diverse issues. It’s parents, doctors”
The doctor in the zoom call wanted to jump in and answer, but the chair cut the committee short and immediately adjourned.
I guess we're done for the day?
That was abrupt.
I have never seen such a rushed hearing with so few witnesses called forward… what the heck did I just see?
Sorry to those of you who showed up to testify who didn't get to.
Well… thanks for following along. We'll watch to see how they vote. Please support my independent reporting and activism by subscribing.
http://erininthemorn.substack.com
Originally tweeted by Erin Reed (@ErinInTheMorn) on February 14, 2023.
Florida Now Going After Social Studies Textbooks
The white nationalist religious racist maga fanatics are not satisfied with wiping out the LGBTQ+ from schools and making their lives difficult in Florida. Now they want to whitewash the racist history of the US to wipe out the mistreatment and economy of the slave states built of free slave labor that gave no benefit of that labor to the black people but instead benefited only the white people. This started with outlawing any teaching that would make white kids uncomfortable, with no care how the black kids in the same classes / age groups felt. It was totally geared to the comfort and image of the white students. This current drive removed the historical context as to why the standard economic situations are so different when you compare white economic status to the average black family’s economic status. This denies the systematic racism that has existed in the US even to today. Red lining preventing community up grades, loans for businesses in majority black areas, the taking of black areas by the government so businesses could make profit that again destroyed black communities. Mass transit was often denied to lower income black areas that needed it for work because they couldn’t afford cars. There are so many ways the systems are designed to disadvantage blacks that make the current economic situation clear it is not the black communities fault. Look at the difference in funding and supplies between traditional majority black public schools compared to white majority public schools. This is being done so that racist can make a case that the situation black people are in is their own doing, they are less intelligent than whites, they care less about their families than whites, they care less about their homes / property than whites, the reason police action against blacks is they don’t respect police or follow their directions like white people do leaving out the context of the way blacks are treated by police in the US even in the modern day.
We must fight back against this with everything we have. Florida has already become the Meca paradise for the white supremist white Christian nationalist crowd backed up by thug gang enforcers that love the Gov. DeathSantis attacks anyone who is different while acting like a king with any who disagrees with him, threatening what little free press remains. Oh ya, this is the free state of Florida according to DeathSantis campaign slogan. Hugs
The New York Times reports:
In Florida, textbooks have become hot politics, part of Gov. Ron DeSantis’s campaign against what he describes as “woke indoctrination” in public schools, particularly when it comes to race and gender. Last year, his administration made a splash when it rejected dozens of math textbooks, citing “prohibited topics.” Now, the state is reviewing curriculum in what is perhaps the most contentious subject in education: social studies.
In the last few months, as part of the review process, a small army of state experts, teachers, parents and political activists have combed thousands of pages of text — not only evaluating academic content, but also flagging anything that could hint, for instance, at critical race theory. The Florida Citizens Alliance, a conservative group, has urged the state to reject 28 of the 38 textbooks that its volunteers reviewed.
Bypass the paywall via this gift link.
They’re even going after Rosa Parks.
Hey Teacher … what does “different sorts of groups” mean?
Why did a lady being asked to move her seat go to the Supreme Court?
Kids won’t ask such questions. I remember being told “savages” liked being civilized by European invaders when the country was founded
I thought that sounded wrong but I didn’t speak up as a kid
“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
– democratic Socialist George Orwell.
I can’t wait for FL kids to learn about the War of Northern Aggression and the reign of the Tyrant Lincoln. /s
It “focuses too much” on the “negative side” to our genocide of the collective tribes and nations of the Native American cultures?
So they’re saying they want us to celebrate genocide then?
Figures. They are neo-nazis after all.
I’m glad we are getting some actual examples now of what these changes entail. They are even worse than I imagined. So bad that the students, I hope, will be correcting the teachers.
A whole state full of white supremacists. That’s what ROnda Sandtits is shooting for
Because no one will know that white people did anything wrong .
DeSantis vs. diversity: Blacklists have universities playing defense as Republicans attack<.b>
” In more than a dozen interviews with the Herald, faculty and staff described a quiet calculus on campuses as educators navigate an increasingly hostile work environment resulting from vague and ever-evolving directives coming from Tallahassee.
Arizona Schools Chief Launches Anti-Teacher Snitch Line
Over the last 50 years while the democrats pursued only the highest offices in the land the republicans were pushing hard to take over state government and the churches rushed to take over the school boards. I remember that in the 1990s in Palm Beach Conty that the big churches were fielding stealth candidates to take over the boards and change what was being taught. It was underway back then! Now the right wing /maga republicans are using their complete control over the levers of state power to end right, roll back protections, to take the states back to a time of strict gender roles for the sexes and a time when minorities were second class citizens who either knew their place or they were not allowed in society in any way. In fact they are not just trying to return society where gays were a shame to the family but they want a time when gays could be arrested along with denied working for any level of government being banned from security clearances. They are driving hard for this. Look at the red states trying hard to bring back banned conversion therapy that has been well and full debunked as not only something that doesn’t work but was found to be very harmful to those subjected to it. They again want to deny the medical science because it shows their ideology is wrong. Being gay or trans is not a choice, it is not a disease needing to change or cured. People are born gay / trans and while some manage to hide it, they should have to. They should be able to live their lives freely as they really are. Plus now they want to set up secret hidden police where neighbor spys on each other and reports to hotlines those not following the party rule. Hugs
From the Arizona Department of Education:
Arizona schools chief Tom Horne has launched the Department of Education “Empower Hotline” so that Arizonans can report inappropriate public school lessons that detract from teaching academic standards.
These include those that focus on race or ethnicity, rather than individuals and merit, promoting gender ideology, social emotional learning, or inappropriate sexual content.
The hotline provides the opportunity for constituents to provide feedback, concerns or complaints, which is a standard service offered by multiple government agencies and private-sector businesses.
It is available at 602-771-3500, or through email at empower@azed.gov. The phone line will be staffed during normal business hours, but after-hours phone calls as well as emails will be accepted at any time and followed up appropriately.
Horne explained, “Some say critical race theory (CRT) is a graduate study, not taught in K-12 schools. The evidence is to the contrary. I have a list of 250 Arizona teachers who signed a shocking statement promoted by the national teachers’ union, that if critical race theory were banned, they would defy the law.
“They would not have signed if they were not already teaching it. They come from 25 school districts, including the largest ones. Teachers must teach academics, not use their power over a captive audience, to promote their personal ideology. That is unprofessional conduct.”
Horne added, “I promised to establish this hotline so that anyone could report the teaching of inappropriate lessons that rob students of precious minutes of instruction time in core academic subjects such as reading, math, science, history and the arts. That promise is being kept.”
While Arizona state attorney general, Horne threatened to sue cities that recognized out-of-state same-sex marriages. That same year he proposed legislation allowing public school teachers to carry guns. Horne has faced multiple allegations of campaign finance crimes and has a lifetime trading ban by the Securities and Exchange Commission related to an investment firm he founded before running for public office. As you can see below, he is a supporter of QAnon freak show Vaseline Woman.
I hope that students flood the call line with reports of teachers talking about their heterosexual spouses, or wearing crosses and talking about their faith.
Horne explained, “Some say critical race theory (CRT) is a graduate
study, not taught in K-12 schools. The evidence is to the contrary. I
have a list of 250 Arizona teachers who signed a shocking statement
promoted by the national teachers’ union, that if critical race theory
were banned, they would defy the law.
He missed a great opportunity to use the phrase “I have here in my hand…”
They were pulling that up in New Hampshire after passing their law banning “divisive concepts” in the classroom.
Now they’re whining about a big teacher shortage because all the good ones who could got the hell out and moved here to Massachusetts or elsewhere.
“The whole function of education is to create a Nazi.” ~ Bernhard Rust, Nazi education minister, February 1938
This Canadian immigrant, son of Polish immigrants, cost Arizona millions of dollars when as Attorney General he got the Republican-run legislature to ban Mexican studies here in Tucson. Went all the way to the Supremes, who told this old fuck to fuck the fuck off. The bill he promoted banned well-known history books because they mentioned discrimination against Mexican-Americans. Always interesting to see immigrants coming to the US and promoting hatred towards other immigrants (e.g., Rupert Murdoch).
Superintendent Horne said, “There’s nothing more outrageous than religious prejudice…”
Nothing? I can think of a few things:
– pastors who sexually abuse children
– revivals
– evangelical parents who brainwash their children
– “ex-gay” torture
– Anti-Semitism
– racism
– rape
– laws that dehumanize and persecute LGBTQ people
– Republicans
– Trumpvangelicals
– QAnon cultists
– White/Christian Nationalists
– book bans
– the dissemination of far-right propaganda
– everyone who works at Fox
Florida Schools Remove Book About Holocaust Survivor
West Palm Beach’s NBC affiliate reports:
A new list shows dozens and dozens of books have been removed from library shelves in the Martin County School District. This comes as the state puts in new requirements for school librarians to review reading material, and districts must have a process allowing community members to challenge books.
Books by well known authors like James Patterson, Toni Morrison, and Jodi Picoult are now off the shelves in Martin County schools.
“99% of the books we have filed challenges on are highly sexually explicit books,” said Julie Marshall, who leads Moms For Liberty in Martin County and filed many of the objections. Jennifer Pippin, a fellow Moms For Liberty activist in Indian River County, said they share lists and work together.
The Washington Post reports:
The removal list includes Picoult’s novel “The Storyteller” about the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor who meets an elderly former SS officer. It contains some violent scenes told in flashbacks from World War II and an assisted suicide.
“Banning ‘The Storyteller’ is shocking, as it is about the Holocaust and has never been banned before,” Picoult told us in an email.
“Martin County is the first to ban twenty of my books at once,” Picoult said, slamming such bans as “a shocking breach of freedom of speech and freedom of information.” Picoult said she’s puzzled by the ban, because she does not “write adult romance,” as objections filed against her books claimed.
DeSantis Seeks $98 Million To Fund New FL Military
I read the linked article and I suggest you do also. What this makes clear is that DeSantis wants is his own storm troopers, his own terror troops answerable only to him. The national guard is under the auspices of the US government and follows the polices of the Department of defense. The National Guard is part of the U.S. military but is unusual because it is controlled by both state and federal leaders. Most of the time, state National Guards are commanded by governors. However, presidents have the authority to call them into service to respond to hurricanes, bolster border security, and assist in overseas military operations.
The National Guard is a joint activity of the United States Department of Defense (DoD) composed of reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force: the Army National Guard[3] and the Air National Guard, respectively
Who will be the Commander in Chief of the Florida State Guard? Yes the ruler DerSantis himself. Total control total power. The white supremacist gang thugs Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and the other far right gangs were the unofficial enforcement arm of the republican party. Now they will be wearing uniforms. Think of it!
The scary part is what DerSantis claimed about his new personal army. “The Florida State Guard will be comprised of Floridians, and it will be assigned to assist and help only Floridians,” DeSantis said in a news conference last June. “It will not be subject to be mobilized by the federal government, and the federal government cannot impose policies or penalties on the Florida State Guard.”
In other words, just the right kind of people will be allowed to join. Will that mean just white people? Will it mean only Christians? Clearly no gays, lesbians, or trans people will be allowed. Also you know those annoying rules that the Federal government has for fairness, use of force, medical readiness, and the things the force can be used for all are gone, now ruled by people who claim vaccines are more dangerous than the diseases they help prevent, that claims adamantly that the 2020 election was rigged and stolen somehow but have no evidence of it, that claim that drag queens readding to kids is sexual abuse, that not enforcing stereotypical gender roles from the 1950s is sexualizing kids, and that teachers are groomers while ignoring the many religious leaders charged with sexual crimes against kids. And so much more.
The ruler of Florida will now have his own goon squad fake white supremacists Christian nationalist to intimidate the governors enemies and it enforce his decrees in the state. And he wants to be kind of the entire country not just Florida. Will these troops be assigned to minority area voter places under some fake guise of “keeping the peace”? Will they show up at school board meetings in progressive areas to express the displeasure of the governor? Will they have the authority to make the arrests demanded by the king of Florida that is not quite legal for the police to do? Just how far into fascism do we have to before people see the danger. trump just started the ball rolling in to the 1930s Germany, DerSantis wants to finish recreating that time here. Seriously this needs to be fought with all we have. Hugs
Click Orlando reports:
As lawmakers in Tallahassee consider Gov. Ron DeSantis’ budget proposal this session, they will be also be deciding whether to approve a steep funding increase establishing Florida’s own branch of the military. The state guard was dismantled at the end of World War II.
“The Florida State Guard will be comprised of Floridians, and it will be assigned to assist and help only Floridians,” DeSantis said in a news conference last June. “It will not be subject to be mobilized by the federal government, and the federal government cannot impose policies or penalties on the Florida State Guard.”
In its first year, the legislature approved $10 million to restart the Florida State Guard. DeSantis now wants to increase that to $98 million this year.
Read the full article.
He’s already got the uniform.
“The Florida State Guard will be comprised of Floridians, and it will be assigned to assist and help only Floridians,”***
***Unless those Floridians are gay, trans, in a same-sex marriage, vote Democratic, are Black, ex-convicts, undocumented, straight, but want their kids taught accurate history or enjoy drag shows.
Good question. Why does DeSantis need a private army?
What fascist fantasy could he have that needs to be enforced?
Well, first of all there’s us. First the drag queens, then the rest of the gays, then anyone Republicans don’t like…except for the Jews. They still need them to bring on the rapture.
Floridians need to vote ‘correctly’ at polling places. And there’s no D in the word ‘correctly,’ only 2 R’s
Ron’s own little Gestapo. What could possibly go wrong?
Nothing says “authoritarian” like your own personal army.
Does that mean the federal govt. doesn’t need to supply any aid next time FL is hit with a massive hurricane?
The building of his own SS troops before the Fascism take over the country. Who needs to go to Argentina to hunt for the good old Nazis when Florida is just right there.
These forces will be specially trained to round up LGBT+ citizens, camps are coming.
At this point, we need Governor Newsom, Governor Hochul, and Governor Pritzker to form a pact to each do everything Florida does. DeSantis targets Disney? Newsom, Hochul, and Pritzker go after Hobby Lobby and Chick-fil-A. DeSantis tells the College Board they have to bow to his “anti-woke” bullshit or be kicked out of Florida? Newsom and Hochul tell the College Board that if they do, they’re banned from California, New York, and Illinois. DeSantis wants a private army in Florida? Looks like California, New York, and Illinois need private armies, too. Make sure the Republicans in the federal government know that if they allow this shit, they’re signing off on blue states doing it too. DeSantis is engaging in the social equivalent of unilateral nuclear proliferation. It’s time for Democratic elected officials to get M.A.D.
the federal government cannot impose policies or penalties on the Florida State Guard
What BS, there will be all kinds of employment regs you have to follow. And it is just another state police force (militia) that has to follow the Constitution.
This is the first concrete step to his ultimate plan for Florida to secede. His plan goes far beyond running for president.
162 years ago — “On January 10, 1861, Florida delegates who were meeting in the state capital, Tallahassee, voted to secede from the U.S. Florida became one of the six original Southern states to form the Confederate States of America.”
As the complete Article states, the Florida National Guard is “insufficient”, because it’s under Federal control. This is once again posturing by a short heavy wannabe Presidential hopeful. Who thank dog is term limited as Governor , after we send him packing should he gain the nomination for President
It is Pooptin’s idea, the first step to divide the States literally.
Has that traitor sanctioned the Russian yachts owners in Florida yet? Last time we checked he hasn’t.
And I suppose the Florida citizens are OK with spending the $$$ for Ronnie’s mercenary army?
And now he’s forming his own army, probably to fend off the next war of northern aggression. I’m reminded of this scene in The Great Dictator:
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