A Florida parent has sparked discussion after sharing that they had to sign a permission slip so their child would be allowed to listen to a book written by a Black person. We doubt the school circulates the same permission slip for books written by white people, but we did reach out to the Miami-Dade County Public School system for clarification.
The permission slip shared by Chuck Walter (@ChuckWalterFL), a parent with a child attending a Miami-Dade County Public School, is for his kid to be able to attend a 30-minute read-aloud activity.
“Students will participate and listen to a book written by an African American,” the activity description reads.
It also states that a fireman, doctor, or artist may attend too, but it’s unclear if any of these guests would also be Black.
The post has nearly 13 million views and over a thousand comments and comes in the middle of Black History Month.
“Not children needing permission to READ No wonder the literacy rates are in the toilet. And it being an issue to have a book by a Black author during Black History Month in 2024,” one commenter wrote.
“It’s an event. Events require parents permission. Simple,” a person pointed out. “I highly doubt that every read aloud requires parent permission…” another responded.
“For 30 MINUTES! That’s it. Do they have permission slips for “white books?”” a further user asked.
States across the country have passed laws that prohibit or limit teaching about Black and Indigenous history (among other cultures) in the United States. They also restrict teaching about other forms of systemic bias, like sexism. This comes at the same time that anti-trans laws have been on the rise.
There has long been racism and other biases in the United States that have permeated the school system. In recent years, there has been an influx of what is often referred to as “anti-critical race theory” (CRT) or “anti-diversity” laws in response to renewed attention around systemic racism and the rise of conservative political figures.
Examples of these laws include states prohibiting public schools from having mandatory diversity training and banning concepts like racism, race, gender, and white privilege from being taught in K-12 schools.
Conservative media outlets have played a large role in villanizing the teaching of anything race-related in schools by misrepresenting the information and intent, instead painting it as a threat to white people and their power in society.
And with social media creating echo chambers, people who are exposed to these racist talking points largely end up confirming their own existing biases and doubling down on the “need” for these racist education laws.
So far, at least five states have passed anti-diversity laws—Florida, Texas, Tennessee, North Dakota, and Oklahoma— and several others—Arizona, Iowa, Missouri, South Carolina, and Utah— have proposed antidiversity legislation.
The Daily Dot previously wrote about a Texas school canceling Black graduation, a beloved tradition, due to the state’s anti-DEI legislation.
The Daily Dot reached out to the school district for comment via email and to Walteer, the parent, via his website.
