When the College Board removed concepts like “intersectionality, mass incarceration, reparations, and the Black Lives Matter movement” from its Advanced Placement African American Studies course, both educators and students were alarmed. These changes are just one of the results of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ ‘Stop “Wrongs to our Kids and Employees” Act,’ otherwise known as the Stop W.O.K.E. Act, passed in 2022. Guest host Natasha S. Alford, Senior Correspondent for The Grio, spoke with Dr. Keisha Blain of Brown University and Sommer Brugal, reporter at the Miami Herald to learn how the policy is affecting students right now. Next Amara Abdullah, a student organizer and co-founder of the Black Lives Matter Youth Vanguard talked about her work for justice for Black students in schools, and author Marisa Renee Lee described collective grief and how the erasure of Black history prevents necessary healing.
Listen to the episode here.