The College Board has removed critical race theory (CRT) and queer studies from its Advanced Placement American Studies curriculum for high school students.
The College Board threw out the controversial topics after heavy criticism from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The College Board is a non-profit organization that includes over 6,000 colleges, universities, and educational organizations among its membership.
The announcement came on Feb. 1, the first day of Black History Month in America.
According to The New York Times, the names of many Black writers and scholars associated with critical race theory were purged from the curriculum. Also, the queer experience and Black feminism courses are gone. The College Board also removed controversial topics like Black Lives Matter.
“Black conservatism” is now offered as an idea for African American Studies.
In January, Governor DeSantis, a Republican, announced he would ban the AP African American Studies curriculum, which he said “lacked educational value.”
In a press conference last week, DeSantis said Florida already requires teaching Black history, but the AP African American Studies adds layers of “indoctrination,” which he opposes.
“If you fall on the side of indoctrination, we’re gonna decline,” DeSantis said.
“We believe in teaching kids facts and how to think, but we don’t believe they should have an agenda imposed on them. When you try to use black history to shoehorn in queer theory, you are clearly trying to use that for political purposes.”
According to MasterClass, the goal of “queer theory” is to “deconstruct what is acceptable or ‘normal.'”
“Queer Theory is a field of study that examines the nature of sexuality- and gender-based normativity and how society defines and polices the concepts of heterosexuality, homosexuality, and gender and sexual identities.”
