Leftists Don’t Want Florida Kids To Learn About These Former Slaves’ Self-Made Success StoriesRushing to attack DeSantis, many have attacked history itself, pushing views that degrade the contributions of blacks in early America.
By: Raheem Williams
August 02, 2023
The debate on teaching black history — and the role slavery played in it — is front and center in the state of Florida. While many on the left (and now the right) lambast Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state Department of Education for their new history curriculum standards — which teach that some former slaves leveraged skills gained during slavery for their own prosperity as free men — it is clear that real history is under threat of being lost.
American slavery was brutal, oppressive, and dehumanizing. It is a stain on our country’s history that continues to plague us today. Slavery is a grave wrong against humanity. However, we seem to lack consensus on how to teach this sensitive subject.
Despite how insensitive some may believe it to be, some slaves did learn skilled trades — and they did use these skills to secure their freedom. Some of these former slaves even went on to use these skills to buy freedom for their families and build successful businesses. This is not an opinion but a fact.
For example, let us consider the stories of Free Frank McWorter, Henry Boyd, and Benjamin Thornton Montgomery. ...
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