This week, the school board in Escambia County, Florida, banned three books from public schools at the request of Vicki Baggett, a high school English teacher accused by numerous students of being openly racist and homophobic in class. In each case, the Escambia County school board sided with Baggett over the recommendation of committees comprised of teachers, administrators, librarians, parents, and community members.
Why haven't the parents in these districts risen up and gotten these bigots fired? How do the people of Florida put up with a racist like DeSantis running their State? I have many friends who have changed their retirement plans about moving to Florida because it is now such a back water State under his Governance. You couldn't get me to spend one dime of my tourism dollars there. Disgusting!
I ordered a copy of "And Tango Makes Three." It is a cool story.
Been my experience these Homophobs get entirely too much attention. They fired a substitute for a video of empty shelves yet this school board and teacher ban books like rain from the sky. Go ACLU I hope the sue.
I won't be spending money in FLA. No longer on my list of places to vacation. Make it economic. My Daddy always said "A hit to the wallet was more effective than a kick in the groin" (I cleaned it up, folks) I can stay home and seeth over Youngkin and thank my stars for the Virginia State Senate Dems. We are one step from becoming Florida.
Iif this one cruel (and unusual) person can have such a negative impact, imagine the positive impact hundreds of thousands of good people could have. It's all about focus and showing up.
Thanks for covering this Judd. The latest attack includes Florida’s Rep Perry introducing a bill to provide funding for “music education” for elementary students. Watch this one - I’m betting it will become a way to indoctrinate kids with “Christian” hymns and songs. Republican Florida legislators have a stranglehold on Florida with DeSantis enabling it. There is an effort to prohibit protests in Florida’s capitol building. This is in addition to DeSantis threatening peaceful protestors with incarceration and his voter suppression police force. And our “local” paper has discontinued its opinion pages so no letters to the editor in protest of outrageous policies and laws. We’re living in an authoritarian state now with many hate-filled people LOVING it. If I could move I would. My best defense is to stay out and proud. Hiding is not an option if I want to live free and not let them win.
Folks, the actions of the ACLU is critical here. I am embarased to admit my membership had lapsed. Plse don't do what I did. We need the ACLU more than ever. Thx.
Vicki Baggett is a disgusting human being. She's literally the worst of us. How anyone could say this woman is a "good person" is beyond comprehension. She clearly hates anyone who isn't just like her. What a horrible trait for a 'teacher' tasked with forming our youth. She's actively engaged in indoctrination herself. She's trying to teach her students to hate and she shouldn't have a job. Go work in some private religious school where they encourage this type of stuff. There's no place for this in public schools. I hate Florida. Couldn't imagine raising a family there with racists and bigots running things.
Please don't be upset if I were to say that I wouldn't want you anywhere near, let alone having any influence over my or any other child within this country. I would hope that common sense might prevail among a majority of the school board within Escambia County sometime in the near future.
I realize that Florida is a hyper reactionary politically backward "Red State" but we are talking about "penguins"... yes?
I wonder about Ms. Baggett's take on... Winnie the Pooh? Stuffed animals? Pac Man? Golf? Red Meat? Stand your ground laws? Rittenhouse? Biden? Trump?
Perhaps the red citizenry of Florida and some other "red states" should be allowed/encouraged to secede as they certainly could care less about the rights of others or understand the plain English language of the Articles of the US Constitution. They do seem to understand how to avoid taxes, create frivolous law suits, demand ownership rights to military weapons and the ability to open and conceal carry, lie, cheat and steal elections...and so forth. Perhaps a separation of talents might be a solution. We are a country that believes in personal freedoms. A simple test of evolutionary intelligence. Those that pass are provided the opportunity to move to Blue, those that d**'t, stay in the Red where they will be most happy without the pesky federal govt. or any of the federal support. Regulated Visas would be issued to allow for restricted travel between the different colored states with an adherence to each state's laws.
Everyone would have a choice as to where and under what kinds of conditions, laws, restrictions, they would like to live. This would be the new American right to live where you were most comfortable? Divided we would fall/fail and everyone would loose in the end. I am not sure that we aren't there now in reality...just not admitting to, accepting, maybe denying that reality?
Ignorance is an epidemic. My 43 year old daughter is gay and has been gay all her life. I let both of my daughters read whatever they liked, and I have one who is gay and the other who is cis. Whoever thinks a child can be "indoctrinated" into a sexual identity is too stupid to be allowed to decide for everyone else what a child can read or hear or see.
This is the work of a sick man whose hunger for power is justified in his own mind by his priggish display of a fake morality. He understands how the power of his words can help him become president, and he has chosen, like Trump, to rally the bigots and idiots to help him become president.
Thanks Judd for staying in top of this and doing such solid journalism. This lays bare the myth that extremist Republicans give two shits about free speech or small government (I cannot refer to them as "conservatives" in good conscience because of his is radical behavior). If you don't like it, don't read it but do not tell others what they can or cannot read.
As a 30+ year member of the ACLU, I hope they sue the living daylights out of the Escambia Co. School Board. And I imagine it won’t be long before Florida finds a reason to ban Fahrenheit 451.
I am wondering why the students haven’t protested? They have nothing to fear. And their parents should join them. This is outrageous. The teacher is abusing them. And that school board needs to be fired.
Why haven't the parents in these districts risen up and gotten these bigots fired? How do the people of Florida put up with a racist like DeSantis running their State? I have many friends who have changed their retirement plans about moving to Florida because it is now such a back water State under his Governance. You couldn't get me to spend one dime of my tourism dollars there. Disgusting!
I ordered a copy of "And Tango Makes Three." It is a cool story.
Been my experience these Homophobs get entirely too much attention. They fired a substitute for a video of empty shelves yet this school board and teacher ban books like rain from the sky. Go ACLU I hope the sue.
I won't be spending money in FLA. No longer on my list of places to vacation. Make it economic. My Daddy always said "A hit to the wallet was more effective than a kick in the groin" (I cleaned it up, folks) I can stay home and seeth over Youngkin and thank my stars for the Virginia State Senate Dems. We are one step from becoming Florida.
Great reporting PI !
Nothing but big red flags when racists and bigots have the power to ban books in America and we should all be protesting loudly.
BTW, for a high school teacher, Vicky Baggett has atrocious hand writing.
The Escambia County school board feels a lot like the U.S. Supreme Court in its current iteration. That's not a favorable comparison.
Iif this one cruel (and unusual) person can have such a negative impact, imagine the positive impact hundreds of thousands of good people could have. It's all about focus and showing up.
Thanks for covering this Judd. The latest attack includes Florida’s Rep Perry introducing a bill to provide funding for “music education” for elementary students. Watch this one - I’m betting it will become a way to indoctrinate kids with “Christian” hymns and songs. Republican Florida legislators have a stranglehold on Florida with DeSantis enabling it. There is an effort to prohibit protests in Florida’s capitol building. This is in addition to DeSantis threatening peaceful protestors with incarceration and his voter suppression police force. And our “local” paper has discontinued its opinion pages so no letters to the editor in protest of outrageous policies and laws. We’re living in an authoritarian state now with many hate-filled people LOVING it. If I could move I would. My best defense is to stay out and proud. Hiding is not an option if I want to live free and not let them win.
The Escambia board got is backwards. They should have banned Baggett, not books. She is a far greater danger to children than any book.
I do not understand how a parent of school age kids could live in Flori-duh. Stupid is as stupid does.
This is the FREEDOM our RW "friends" promise.
Folks, the actions of the ACLU is critical here. I am embarased to admit my membership had lapsed. Plse don't do what I did. We need the ACLU more than ever. Thx.
Vicki Baggett is a disgusting human being. She's literally the worst of us. How anyone could say this woman is a "good person" is beyond comprehension. She clearly hates anyone who isn't just like her. What a horrible trait for a 'teacher' tasked with forming our youth. She's actively engaged in indoctrination herself. She's trying to teach her students to hate and she shouldn't have a job. Go work in some private religious school where they encourage this type of stuff. There's no place for this in public schools. I hate Florida. Couldn't imagine raising a family there with racists and bigots running things.
Ms. Baggett,
Please don't be upset if I were to say that I wouldn't want you anywhere near, let alone having any influence over my or any other child within this country. I would hope that common sense might prevail among a majority of the school board within Escambia County sometime in the near future.
I realize that Florida is a hyper reactionary politically backward "Red State" but we are talking about "penguins"... yes?
I wonder about Ms. Baggett's take on... Winnie the Pooh? Stuffed animals? Pac Man? Golf? Red Meat? Stand your ground laws? Rittenhouse? Biden? Trump?
Perhaps the red citizenry of Florida and some other "red states" should be allowed/encouraged to secede as they certainly could care less about the rights of others or understand the plain English language of the Articles of the US Constitution. They do seem to understand how to avoid taxes, create frivolous law suits, demand ownership rights to military weapons and the ability to open and conceal carry, lie, cheat and steal elections...and so forth. Perhaps a separation of talents might be a solution. We are a country that believes in personal freedoms. A simple test of evolutionary intelligence. Those that pass are provided the opportunity to move to Blue, those that d**'t, stay in the Red where they will be most happy without the pesky federal govt. or any of the federal support. Regulated Visas would be issued to allow for restricted travel between the different colored states with an adherence to each state's laws.
Everyone would have a choice as to where and under what kinds of conditions, laws, restrictions, they would like to live. This would be the new American right to live where you were most comfortable? Divided we would fall/fail and everyone would loose in the end. I am not sure that we aren't there now in reality...just not admitting to, accepting, maybe denying that reality?
Ignorance is an epidemic. My 43 year old daughter is gay and has been gay all her life. I let both of my daughters read whatever they liked, and I have one who is gay and the other who is cis. Whoever thinks a child can be "indoctrinated" into a sexual identity is too stupid to be allowed to decide for everyone else what a child can read or hear or see.
This is the work of a sick man whose hunger for power is justified in his own mind by his priggish display of a fake morality. He understands how the power of his words can help him become president, and he has chosen, like Trump, to rally the bigots and idiots to help him become president.
When my kids were young, we used to love vacationing in Florida every year. I simply refuse to be there any more and that is a shame.
Thanks Judd for staying in top of this and doing such solid journalism. This lays bare the myth that extremist Republicans give two shits about free speech or small government (I cannot refer to them as "conservatives" in good conscience because of his is radical behavior). If you don't like it, don't read it but do not tell others what they can or cannot read.
As a 30+ year member of the ACLU, I hope they sue the living daylights out of the Escambia Co. School Board. And I imagine it won’t be long before Florida finds a reason to ban Fahrenheit 451.
I am wondering why the students haven’t protested? They have nothing to fear. And their parents should join them. This is outrageous. The teacher is abusing them. And that school board needs to be fired.