What we learned from our Florida voting rights investigation
“A crackdown by Ron DeSantis and Florida Republicans has spent millions pursuing rare voter fraud, hampered voter registration and weakened Black voters’ influence“
Instead of “Stop and Frisk” DeSantis wants to go with “Shoot! Or I will Shoot!”
The Four Freedoms, According to Republicans
What should we make of all this? In his 1941 State of the Union address, Franklin Roosevelt said there was “nothing mysterious about the foundations of a healthy and strong democracy” and that he, along with the nation, looked forward to “a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.” Famously, those freedoms were the “freedom of speech and expression,” the “freedom of every person to worship God in his own way,” the “freedom from want” and the “freedom from fear.” Those freedoms were the guiding lights of his New Deal, and they remained the guiding lights of his administration through the trials of World War II.”
“There are, I think, four freedoms we can glean from the Republican program.
There is the freedom to control — to restrict the bodily autonomy of women and repress the existence of anyone who does not conform to traditional gender roles.
There is the freedom to exploit — to allow the owners of business and capital to weaken labor and take advantage of workers as they see fit.
There is the freedom to censor — to suppress ideas that challenge and threaten the ideologies of the ruling class.
And there is the freedom to menace — to carry weapons wherever you please, to brandish them in public, to turn the right of self-defense into a right to threaten other people.
Roosevelt’s four freedoms were the building blocks of a humane society — a social democratic aspiration for egalitarians then and now. These Republican freedoms are also building blocks not of a humane society but of a rigid and hierarchical one, in which you can either dominate or be dominated.”
The Ron DeSantis Presidential Campaign Kicked Off Already… in 1964
“The Florida governor’s “antiwoke” agenda is just Barry Goldwater’s playbook updated for the digital age.“
MUST WATCH:
1933 vs 2023 – Compare and Contrast:
1933: KEY DATES
“February 27
The German parliament (Reichstag) building burns down due to arson. The government falsely portrays the fire as part of a Communist effort to overthrow the state.”
“May 10
German student organizations supported by Nazi Party members organize public rallies across Germany. They burn books written by Jews, political opponents, and liberal intellectuals, and announce that they are “purifying” German libraries of “un-German” books.”
BOOK BURNING
“Beginning on May 10, 1933, Nazi-dominated student groups carried out public burnings of books they claimed were “un-German.” The book burnings took place in 34 university towns and cities. Works of prominent Jewish, liberal, and leftist writers ended up in the bonfires. The book burnings stood as a powerful symbol of Nazi intolerance and censorship.”
“July 14
The German parliament issues the Law against the Founding of New Political Parties, which establishes the Nazi Party as the sole legal political party in Germany. Nazi Germany formally becomes a one-party state.The German government enacts the Law for the Repeal of Naturalization and Recognition of German Citizenship (Gesetz über den Widerruf von Einbürgerungen und die Aberkennung der deutschen Staatsangehörigkeit), which deprives recently naturalized German Jews of German citizenship.”
‘This is downright authoritarian’: Florida Republican lambasted over bill to obliterate all traces of Democrats
“September 22
In Germany, the newly founded Chambers of Literature, Press, Broadcasting, Theater, Film, Music, and Fine Arts deny membership to Jews, effectively excluding Jews from employment in the cultural sector.”
Florida bills would ban gender studies, transgender pronouns, tenure perks
“Florida legislators have proposed a spate of new laws that would reshape K-12 and higher education in the state, from requiring teachers to use pronouns matching children’s sex as assigned at birth to establishing a universal school choice voucher program.
The half-dozen bills, filed by a cast of GOP state representatives and senators, come shortly before the launch of Florida’s legislative session Tuesday. Other proposals in the mix include eliminating college majors in gender studies, nixing diversity efforts at universities and job protections for tenured faculty, strengthening parents’ ability to veto K-12 class materials and extending a ban on teaching about gender and sexuality — from third grade up to eighth grade.
The legislation has already drawn protest from Democratic politicians, education associations, free speech groups and LGBTQ advocates, who say the bills will restrict educators’ ability to instruct children honestly, harm transgender and nonbinary students and strip funding from public schools.”
‘It Makes Pride Stronger’: South Florida Drag Queens Respond to Proposed Ban
Tennessee enacts nation’s first law restricting drag shows, bans gender-affirming care for youth
We are entering the Genocide portion of our program:
The ‘Lebensraum’ of our time:
History repeats itself with anti-China land ownership proposals
“New efforts to bar Chinese citizens and others from owning property in Texas and other states echo the treatment of Asian people in the US more than 100 years ago, when Congress barred them from obtaining citizenship and multiple state laws restricted land ownership.
- In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin is expected to sign legislation to bar citizens of countries the State Department has designated as “foreign adversaries” from owning agricultural land. Companies with deep ties to those countries would also be affected. Those countries currently include China, Russia, North Korea and Iran. There are similar proposals in Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota. Foreign owners control a fraction of US farmland, according to the Congressional Research Service.
- In Texas, a much broader proposal names those countries and bans citizens of them from owning any land whatsoever. The ban would presumably extend to legal immigrants living in the US. That bill is still working its way through the legislature but has the support of Gov. Greg Abbott.”
Texas senators, facing criticism, soften proposed ban on Chinese purchases of land
“The measure, endorsed by Gov. Greg Abbott, originally would have banned citizens of China, Iran, Russia or North Korea from buying land in Texas. Under a new version considered Thursday, the ban wouldn’t apply to dual citizens or lawful permanent residents.”
1933:
Outlawing the Opposition
Still under Nazi control, the Reichstag passed a new law on March 21, 1933, that made it a crime to speak out against the new government or criticize its leaders. Known as the Malicious Practices Act, the law made even the smallest expression of dissent a crime. Those who were accused of “gossiping” or “making fun” of government officials could be arrested and sent to prison or a concentration camp.”“That same day, Nazi leader Heinrich Himmler, then police commissioner for the city of Munich, held a news conference to announce the opening of the first concentration camp near Dachau, Germany. According to Himmler, the camp would have the capacity to hold 5,000 people, including Communist Party members and Social Democrats “who threaten the security of the state.” Himmler continued, according to a newspaper report:”
Oath and Opposition: Education under the Third Reich
“What role did teachers play during the Holocaust?
Under the authority of the Third Reich, teachers were obligated to join the National Socialist Teacher’s League, which was responsible for carrying out the educational goals of the Nazi Party, and to take an oath of loyalty to the Führer, Adolf Hitler. Despite these obligations, though, teachers were still able to make individual choices. Some chose to comply with Nazi ideology, while others chose to act in opposition.”
Book Burnings in Germany, 1933
“On May 10, 1933, university students in 34 university towns across Germany burned over 25,000 books. The works of Jewish authors like Albert Einstein and Sigmund Freud went up in flames alongside blacklisted American authors such as Ernest Hemingway and Helen Keller, while students gave the Nazi salute. In Berlin 40,000 people gathered to hear German Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels give a speech in Berlin’s Opera Square. He declared “the era of extreme Jewish intellectualism is now at an end. … The future German man will not just be a man of books, but a man of character. It is to this end that we want to educate you. … And thus you do well in this midnight hour to commit to the flames the evil spirit of the past.” Radio stations broadcast the Berlin speeches, songs, and ceremonial incantations to countless German listeners. Widespread newspaper coverage called the “Action against the Un-German Spirit” a success. The Nazi war on “un-German” individual expression had begun.”
2023 Florida:
Florida Senator proposes bill to ‘cancel’ Democratic Party in state
“Florida Sen. Blaise Ingoglia is backing a new bill in Florida that he calls the “Ultimate Cancel Act,” aimed to ban any political party that once included slavery in their platforms from running in the state, including the Florida Democratic Party.
While the bill does not specifically name the Democratic Party, Senator Ingoglia has made it clear that this is his target.”
Backed by DeSantis, lawmakers look to gut press freedom. It might not stop in Florida
“Gov. Ron DeSantis has targeted one political enemy after another, from removing a top state prosecutor in Tampa who disagreed with him on abortion rights to promoting an “anti-woke” agenda that limits teaching about racism in public schools and diversity hiring programs at universities. He even went after business behemoth Disney when its CEO opposed an educational bill, dubbed by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
Now, Florida lawmakers — with the support of the governor — are taking aim at the media, pushing legislation that would dramatically weaken legal standards in place for more than a half century that protect the freedom of the press to report on politicians and other powerful public figures.
The bill would make it easier to sue media outlets for allegations of defamation and make it harder for journalists to do their jobs by undermining the use of unnamed sources, an important reporting tool — particularly for media trying to pull back the curtain on the dealings of elected officials. Many First Amendment advocates and legal experts say it is clearly intended to muzzle reporters who serve as watchdogs for the public.”
Bloggers!
Disney!!!
DeSantis signs law dissolving Reedy Creek, putting Disney’s improvement district under state control
“Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law on Monday dissolving Disney World’s Reedy Creek Improvement District putting it under state control.
“Today, the corporate kingdom finally comes to an end,” DeSantis said.”
DeSantis is reversing the Pendelton Act and going back to Andrew Jackson’s Spoils System
DeSantis Stacks New Disney Oversight Board With His Donor Pals
“More Florida Republicans who dished out big bucks to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ re-election bid have been appointed to powerful public jobs—this time on the revamped board of a special tax district that oversees the Walt Disney Company.”
DeSantis appointee to new Disney oversight board suggested tap water could turn people gay
“An appointee to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ new oversight board in control of Disney’s special tax district called homosexuality “evil” last year and shared a baseless conspiracy theory that tap water could be making more people gay.
On Monday, the Republican governor appointed Ron Peri, an Orlando-based former pastor and the CEO of The Gathering – a Christian ministry focused on outreach to men – as one of five people who will now oversee the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the government body that has given Disney unique powers in Central Florida for more than half a century.
DeSantis signed a bill in February that allowed him to replace the district’s existing board – mostly people with ties to Disney – with a five-member body that he hand-picked. The move to remove power from Disney comes nearly a year after the company spoke out against a Florida bill – which DeSantis later signed into law – to restrict certain classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity.”
Or just hires incompetence to garner the MAGA voters
Ron DeSantis’ New Surgeon General Appeared in ‘Demon Sperm’ Doctor’s COVID Conspiracy Video
“Joseph Ladapo—the doctor appointed on Tuesday as Florida’s new surgeon general by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis—once appeared in a COVID-19 conspiracy video featuring Dr. Stella Immanuel. Immanuel, a pediatrician and religious minister, gained notoriety in 2020 for her bizarre theories, including that “demonic seed” causes endometriosis and ovarian cysts.
In July 2020, Ladapo appeared in a 43-minute viral video as part of a group called America’s Frontline Doctors. None of the doctors in the video were epidemiologists or immunologists best qualified to speak on infectious diseases, Rolling Stone reported at the time. The doctors’ recorded speech was organized by the Tea Party Patriots, a right-wing group backed by wealthy Republican donors.
The video promoted hydroxychloroquine as a “cure” for COVID-19, even though studies haven’t substantiated that claim. The video also said that masks do not slow the virus’ spread and that COVID-19 is less deadly than the flu. Both claims are untrue.”
Education:
Ron Desantis hired Christopher Rufo to destroy Florida’s University System
Governor Ron DeSantis Appoints Six to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees
“TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of Christopher Rufo, Dr. Matthew Spalding, Dr. Charles R. Kesler, Dr. Mark Bauerlein, Debra Jenks, and Jason “Eddie” Speir to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees.”
New College of Florida sees record enrollment after DeSantis shakeup, but at academic cost
“Much of the drop can be attributed to incoming student-athletes who, despite scoring worse on average, have earned a disproportionate number of the school’s $10,000-per-year merit-based scholarships.
Establishing an athletic program from scratch within months has been a foundation of Interim New College President Richard Corcoran’s plan to grow enrollment in the incoming class – the first class under his guidance and a cornerstone in the DeSantis-directed transformation of the school into a more conservative, classical liberal arts college in the mold of the Christian Hillsdale College in Michigan.”
Ron DeSantis, Chris Rufo, and the College Anti‐Woke Makeover
“Stoking the culture wars, rallying the Trumpist base, and using the power of the state to defeat bad ideas is not the road back to sanity.”
Emotional meeting ends with DeSantis’ New College of Florida board abolishing diversity office
“New College of Florida’s Board of Trustees abolished the office handling diversity, equity and inclusion programs during a contentious and emotional meeting Tuesday that included testimony from students worried that a board reshaped by Gov. Ron DeSantis is making the school unwelcoming to minorities.
DeSantis appointed six members to New College’s board on Jan. 6 in an effort to transform the school, putting the small Sarasota institution at the center of the GOP’s nationwide pushback on education policies aimed at supporting historically marginalized groups, including racial minorities and LGBTQ individuals.
DeSantis has emerged as a key national figure in this debate after he pushed through legislation governing how K-12 schools discuss race and gender identity and recently prohibited an Advanced Placement course in African American studies, which caused an uproar. The governor is now taking aim at university programs.
Eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives − which have become a major flashpoint for conservatives and a target of DeSantis throughout Florida’s public university system − is among the first substantive actions by New College’s revamped board, which also fired the former president last month and hired DeSantis ally Richard Corcoran as interim president. Corcoran’s first board meeting was Tuesday.”
https://savenewcollege.org/
DEI has replaced CRT as latest acronym Rufo wants everyone to be afraid of (even though no one had heard of it until he told them about it).
To Overcome Resistance to DEI, Understand What’s Driving It
“Summary.
Employees often resist DEI initiatives, which of course hinders their effectiveness. The authors — experts in the resistance to social-change efforts — write that the key to overcoming resistance to any effort is figuring out why people are resisting. When it comes to DEI initiatives, they argue, people resist because they experience at least one of three forms of threat: status threat, merit threat, and moral threat. Depending on the kinds of threat they experience, they then tend to engage in three kinds of resistance: defending, denying, and distancing. The authors explain these forms of threat and resistance and then offer suggestions for how to overcome them. close“
Christopher Rufo you ask?
Big Money is behind angry folks at school board meetings:
The GOP is moving more and more to the right
DeSantis is trying to take Trump’s base away from him:
Book Burning has morphed into Book Banning
A Brief History of Book Burning, From the Printing Press to Internet Archives
“As long as there have been books, people have burned them—but over the years, the motivation has changed”
Former Florida teacher speaks out about incurring the wrath of Gov. DeSantis for tweeting a video of the empty bookshelves at his middle school
- “A substitute teacher in Florida was fired after posting a viral video of empty library bookshelves.
- Governor Ron DeSantis called the clip a “fake narrative.”
- Brian Covey wants to bring national attention to Florida’s book-vetting process in schools.”
Florida School District Bans a Book on… Penguins
“In the picture book, Richardson and Peter Parnell tell the true story of two male penguins at New York City’s Central Park zoo adopting an orphan female chick, demonstrating a nontraditional family dynamic. And Tango Makes Three was published in 2005 and has won, and been nominated for, a slew of children’s book awards.”
Florida schools directed to cover or remove classroom books that are not vetted
“The state said its “Stop WOKE” act applies to books displayed in classrooms.”
