Ben Sasse, the Next President of the University of Florida, and a Critique of the 2008 Supreme Court Decision on Same-Sex Marriage

Editor’s Note: David M. Perry is a journalist, historian and co-author of “The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe.” He is a senior adviser in the history department. You can follow him on TWITTER. The views he has expressed are of his own. There is more opinion on CNN.

Last March, Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that exempted the names of applicants for the presidencies of Florida public universities and colleges from disclosure under public record laws. Last week, the search committee for the next president of the University of Florida named Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska the sole finalist for the position. What happened in between the bill signing and now is anyone’s guess.

Mulvey said that she thinks DeSantis’s focus on diversity programs is dangerous because it will benefit his political career.

Of course, politicians have been named as college presidents before, but as of 2014 only about 2% were from elected or appointed office, and these appointments have almost always been controversial. Even though things were bad last year, we are even more divided today.

I have a PHD in history and have been following Sasse since he became a senator. Newt Gingrich is one of the most prominent history PhDs in American politics. He got his PhD from Yale in 2004 and worked for President Bush for about a year before becoming president of a tiny college.

The Supreme Court decision requiring all states to recognize same-sex marriage was the topic of Sasse’s speech. What does that mean for LGBTQ students (and faculty and staff) at Florida to have a boss who has taken that position? Students are concerned.

Sasse has responded to this criticism by stating that Obergefell is the “law of the land,” so there’s no need to worry, but that kind of reassuring rhetoric was used by conservative nominees to the Supreme Court about Roe v. Wade (and we know how that turned out – those protections of “settled law” are gone).

Speaking of abortion, as president of a major university, Sasse would have significant responsibilities over the reproductive health of students and employees, especially in a college town where so many access health care from university-affiliated sources.

In a press release about the announced legislation, the governor’s office called diversity, equity and inclusion programs “discriminatory” and vowed to prohibit universities from funding them, even if the source of the money isn’t coming from the state.

In fact, the diversity efforts proudly practiced at New College were inherent to a quality education. When a student is able to meet a variety of people and different opinions, they will benefit from their studies. Higher education is all about broadening our horizon.

In December the governor’s office asked all state universities to account for their spending on programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion or critical race theory.

Tuesday’s rally at New College of Florida will also follow the introduction of a bill in the Florida House that mirrors DeSantis’ ideas for an overhaul of higher education.

One of DeSantis’ new board members, Eddie Speir, wrote in an online post that he planned to propose in that meeting “terminating all contracts for faculty, staff and administration” of the school, “and immediately rehiring those faculty, staff and administration who fit in the new financial and business model.”

The state’s education department characterized the move as a rejection of “‘woke’ diversity, equity and inclusion [and] critical race theory ideologies.”

In the official framework made public on Wednesday, topics such as Black Lives Matter, slavery reparations and queer theory are no longer subjects to be taught. They are included only on a list of topics that states and school systems could suggest to students for end-of-the-year projects.

The course is currently being tested at 60 schools around the U.S., and the official framework is intended to guide the expansion of the course to hundreds of additional high schools in the next academic year. The College Board said that developers consulted with professors from more than 200 colleges.

The draft curriculum has gone through several revisions over the last year, which has led to the College Board getting input from the teachers running the pilot classes.

An AP Course on Black History, Black Transgender, and Non-Biased People, and How It Changes Lives, Works, and Causes of Black History

“It is very upsetting to wake up on the first day of Black History Month and see news of white men in important positions of privilege and American history,” stated David Johns, executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition. The lives and contributions of Black trans, queer, and non-binary people should not be diminished.

The course has been popular among students in schools where it has been introduced. The teacher at Baton Rouge Magnet High School in Louisiana wanted so much to teach it that he has two classes instead of one.

He has students that read selections from “The Wretched of the Earth” by Frantz Fanon, which deals with violence in colonial societies. In a lively discussion, students connected the text to what they had learned about the conflict between colonizers and Native Americans, to the war in Ukraine and to police violence in Memphis, Tennessee.

“We’ve been covering the gamut from the shores of Africa to where we are now in the 1930s, and we will continue on through history,” Glynn said. He said he was proud to see the connections his students were making between the past and now.

For Malina Ouyang, 17, taking the class helped fill gaps in what she has been taught. She said that she realized how little is said in other classes.

“Black history isn’t important to just Black people, it is important to everyone,” Simmons said. “It is the fabric of the country … The importance of that causes angst in our community because we try to wipe it away. It’s not just the AP course. It is the whitewashing of African American history in this country. The inequitable treatment of African Americans is what makes our educational institutions so difficult to finance.

AP courses include math, science, social studies, foreign languages and fine arts. The courses are not mandatory. Taught at a college level, students who score high enough on the final exam usually earn course credit at their university.

David Coleman, the CEO of the College Board, stated in a statement that the course was an “unforgettable encounter with facts and evidence of African American history and culture.”

Black artists and inventors whose accomplishments have come to light, Black women and men, including gay Americans, who played pivotal roles in the Civil Rights movements, and people of faith from all background who contributed to the anti slavery and Civil Rights causes will all be included in this course. “Everyone is seen,” he said.

The African American studies course is divided into four units: origins of the African diaspora; freedom, enslavement and resistance; the practice of freedom; and movements and debates.

In Malcolm Reed’s classroom at St. Amant High School in Louisiana, he tries to be aware of how the material and discussions can affect his students.

I’ve seen light bulbs go off when I give them information. I ask them, ‘How does it affect you? How do you feel about learning this?’ ” he said. “It’s also new for me, and I’m just taking it in stride. We’re doing more than learning history.

Many New College students who have come to think of the school as a sanctuary are no longer welcome. The new conservative leadership has been vague about their next moves, making the students feel as if they walked on eggshells.

Elizabeth C. Leininger stated that the spring semester started the day before the board meeting. “It’s kind of like when we get a hurricane here in Florida, and everyone’s preoccupied.”

A Demonstration of Ron DeSantis’ Dismissibility of a New Course on Advanced Placement on Black Studies at New College

The percentage of graduates making at least $30,000 a year after graduation is one of the metrics used by the state to penalize colleges for not being big enough.

Still, unsupported claims by Mr. DeSantis and his allies that New College’s students are being indoctrinated by far-left professors have offended students, faculty, parents and alumni, who feel misrepresented. Many said that the school wanted certain young people to be driven and that they welcomed people who might not fit elsewhere.

Many of the young adults who self-selecting at that time are progressive and feel drawn to the existing student body. That does not mean that what is taught in class is up to date with the views of students.

Joshua Epstein, who is 17 and on schedule to graduate next year after amassing college credits while in high school, said that if anything, he had become more conservative at New College. He said professors encourage students to make their own decisions while teaching different points of view. He switched his major from political science to quantitative economics and hoped to become a corporate lawyer or an investment banker.

Hundreds of marchers, led by the Rev. Al Sharpton and other activists, held a rally outside Florida’s state Capitol on Wednesday to protest Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration’s rejection of a new Advanced Placement course on African American studies.

Sharpton said historical inflections points on racism and bigotry in the US always involved education, from slavery through Jim Crow to the Civil Rights Movement.

To know how bad you were and how strong you are, our children need to know the whole story. They come from a people that fought from the back of the bus to the front of the White House.”

“Make note that we are all marching together,” said Sharpton, noting that the crowd included members of the LGBTQ, Native American and Latinx communities. You should have left us alone. You have come together all of us.

The marchers chanted slogans like, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Ron DeSantis has got to go!” I’m black and I’m proud. Some carried signs with messages such as “Save our history” and “We will not be silenced.”

Shaia Simmons, a former teacher at the march, called the state’s rejection of the new course a “gross injustice” and a “slap in the face to all Americans.”

The Florida Department of Education informed the College Board of its decision to reject the new course in a January 12 letter that later became public and drew widespread criticism from Black leaders in Florida as well as the White House.

The testing organization behind the new course last weekend accused the state Education Department of “slander” and spreading misinformation about it for political gain.

The College Board earlier this month released the official framework of the new Advanced Placement course on African American studies with many of the topics DeSantis objected to removed.

The fight against critical race theory was one of the things that Christopher Rufo was brought about by the college board of trustees. The new board forced out the college’s president and appointed DeSantis ally Richard Corcoran as interim president. Corcoran will earn a base salary of $699,000.

The college’s president was forced out by the new board, and Richard Corcoran was appointed as interim president. The base salary for the job will be $699,000 and it will be filled by Corcoran from February 27 to September 1.

The Importance of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Students in the Era of Anti-Abortion and Black Studies: A Case Study in Florida

“People are very scared for what’s to come, especially kids who aren’t graduating any time soon,” Sharf told CNN. “This is an obvious hostile political act.”

With mounting attacks on diversity and inclusion, students and activists fear that marginalized people will not have a safe place to get a college education in Florida.

Some critics also worry the state might influence other Republican-led states to adopt similar measures, dwindling their options even further. Last week, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott demanded that state agencies stop using diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in hiring with his office, calling the practice “illegal.”

DEI programs were created to give representation for people who have faced discrimination because of their race, ethnicity, disability, gender, or sexual orientation.

The American Association of University Professors told CNN that people might opt for schools in other states if they wanted to pursue a graduate degree.

The consequences for students are enormous according to Mulvey. “They are denied the opportunity to learn and grow, students are denied the opportunity to hear important perspectives. That is the real tragedy.

The executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition said that policies rejecting diversity and inclusion will cause people to leave higher education in Florida.

He said that a lot of the policies are designed to say to people that they don’t matter. The way in which they attempt to strengthen democracy should not be considered related to the version of America they are now calling classical.

The Georgia Legislature passed an anti-abortion bill that some say endangers the lives of women. He fears New College of Florida is a test case for pushing conservatism at schools across the nation.

Some students at New College of Florida are already considering other options for their education. The school has nearly 700 students and 100 full-time faculty members, according to its website.

Shedding Light on the New College of Florida’s “Classical” and “Integral [College of Florida]] Redesign

Sharf said she worries that the new board will erase the inclusive queer culture on campus to make the college more attractive for traditional affluent White students.

Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz said in a statement that officials wanted New College of Florida to “become Florida’s classical college, more along the lines of a Hillsdale of the South.” Hillsdale College is a private conservative Christian college in southern Michigan.

Sharf said he would never attend a school that was called “Hillsdale of the South”. It would be too hostile to tran students and I would probably have to leave.

A third-year anthropology student said the redesign feels like a backlash against the progress of the nation on LGBTQ rights and racial justice.

New College and other universities across the country give a safe place for students to go, and that is what Obraud sees as an attack on educational freedom.

“That’s part of making education accessible to everyone and making sure that people feel safe is a huge part of making sure they are in a good position to learn,” Obraud said.

Chris Kottke, a math professor at the New College of Florida, rejected Republican lawmakers’ claims that the school was a bastion of liberal indoctrination.

Kottke said instructors have always taught students how to think not what to think. Although most of the diverse clubs on campus do not depend on state funds, they still worry about whether or not they will be able to keep operating safely.

The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival, The Case against the DeSantis-Mike-Donor Donald Trump Argument

There was a 1947 legal precedent that banned men from pretending to be women. The landmark Supreme Court decision on libel was proposed to be challenged by him.

To escape this fight of assaults on speech, leadership is required. University presidents need to stand up and insist, and ensure, that all viewpoints – left and right alike – get a fair hearing on campus. They need to fight legislation that threatens academic freedom.

DeSantis is not wrong to point out that progressive orthodoxies can sometimes stifle opposing views. But a principle isn’t a principle unless it’s extended to all, and DeSantis now seems bent on using the power of his office to apply free speech protections only to the ideas he supports.

Indeed, in pushing back against what he decries as wokeness run amok, DeSantis has embraced the very tactics he once decried, putting the weight of government power behind efforts to repress viewpoints that offend him and his supporters.

As is increasingly apparent in many of his public appearances, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is rather like Donald Trump, only without the charm. And that charmless demeanor seeps through his latest book, “The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival,” a grievance-laden tome written in advance of a presumed bid for the Republican nomination in the 2024 presidential election.

The 2020 Flavor Flare Black Holes Dilemma: How Negy’s Speech caused an outburst from the University of Central Florida

Some of the questions that were raised about pronouns, restrooms, sports and the autonomy of adolescents have been raised by the new visibility and appreciation of trans people’s rights. The 2020 murder of George Floyd spurred schools, colleges and companies to take new steps aimed to root out the entrenched, stubborn legacy of racism in their institutions. These are positive developments, vital to bringing about a more inclusive and equal society.

In some cases, though, efforts to promote equity cross over into censoriousness. Some of the works written by the author such as “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Matilda” may be scrubbed because they could be seen as offensive to the overweight or people with horse-like features. The play “The Vagina Monologues” was scrapped by the school due to the fact that it didn’t acknowledge that not all women have vaginas.

Some curricula are simplistic, flat out illiberal, and dismiss challenging questions or alternative perspectives as being out of touch with reality, or at the very least outside the pale.

In 2020 Professor Charles Negy was fired from his position at the University of Central Florida after he caused a stir with a series of posts about “Black privilege”. While the university claimed he was guilty of misconduct, an arbitrator found no just cause for his determination and ordered him reinstated. The University seemed to have a pattern in the incident.

The harassment policy was struck down by a federal appeals court due to its breadth and slipperiness. The court found it “clear that a reasonable student could fear that his speech would get him crossways with the university and that he’d be better off just keeping his mouth shut.”

The bill is an embarrassment. The comprehensive attack is on academic freedom. If passed, this bill will change Florida’s universities and colleges into propaganda factories and intellectual wastelands because it will ban concepts and theories that can be taught.

The legislation filed this week would require all general education courses in state colleges and universities to teach the values needed to preserve the constitutional republic and not define American history in a way contrary to universal principles stated in the Declaration of Independence. General courses would not be allowed with a curriculum based on speculative, theoretical or exploratory content.

To make it impossible for faculty to critique any policy or position that runs counter to the state’s policy, because it’s too difficult to hire and fire people. The core of academic freedom, the very thing that has led to U.S. universities becoming the envy of the world, is the subject of House Bill 970. The bill will sound the death knell of higher education in Florida.

The board of trustees meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, and students and professors are planning to demonstrate against the takeover by the governor.

Leffler said New College of Florida has always encouraged free academic thought. Lawmakers, he said, are trying to strip away that freedom by telling students what they can and can’t study.

Rufo praised the bill for its restoration of colorblind equality in higher ed. Rufo works at the Manhattan Institute and is the director of the critical race theory initiative.

The Courage to Be Free: Jay Parini’s Personal Journey through Scotland with Jorge Luis Borges in 1971 and his Presidential Campaign

Jay Parini teaches poetry and novelists at the college. His most recent book, the memoir “Borges and Me,” is an account of his travels through the Scottish Highlands of Scotland with Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges in 1971. His own views are expressed in this commentary. Read more opinion articles on CNN.

That’s unlikely. Only fans or parties who are actively looking for someone to back in 2024 will read the book, which will be the first unsold copies, rubbing shoulders with Mike’s new memoir “Never Give an Inch” or any past examples of campaign self- advertisement.

Overall, I found the hectoring quality of DeSantis oppressive. He’s a chilly man, with a heart of ice and — like so many politicians on both the right and left these days — full of resentments, grudges and the urge to destroy anyone who doesn’t agree with him. He would deny to many others the courage he claims for himself. I don’t think he would do much if he handed the bully pulpit.

And we can be sure the governor read the book and approved of its contents before publication. The ideas in this book must be assumed to belong to him.

So, if “The Courage to Be Free” is a sign of things to come, DeSantis will likely hang his presidential campaign on efforts to find what he calls the “pressure points” in the system, finding ways to “leverage” his authority to advance his agenda. He’s a lawyer, as he reminds us, educated at the famous Harvard Law School. He’ll use his lawyerly skills to dismantle our heritage and proclaim that he’s freed us by doing so, if the book is any guide.

The rage against political correctness is something that one can see in the book. He rails, on nearly every page, about “the woke agenda” that he sees permeating almost every level of life in America.

Again and again, DeSantis shows little interest in the First Amendment — except when his own free speech is concerned. He didn’t hear Thomas Jefferson who said that liberty depends on the freedom of the press. Jefferson understood that we have a right as a group to speak without fear of being stopped.

By this, he means The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic and so on. These are “the praetorian guard of the nation’s failed ruling class, running interference for elites who share their vision and smearing those who dare of oppose it.” (I suspect he would, no doubt, wish to exempt Rupert Murdoch’s media empire from this judgment.)

Laying out his top priorities for a second term and a potential platform for a presidential run, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivered a State of the State speech Tuesday that conspicuously avoided much of the divisive rhetoric that has fueled his political ascent but nevertheless signaled another round of cultural wars is coming in the weeks ahead.

He said that the November victory was a tribute to his controversial agenda and a promise to swing for the fences in the coming year. He encouraged lawmakers to “ignore all the background noise” as they tackle a lengthy list of priorities that are sure to enrage Democrats but animate future Republican primary voters.

He said that they are in Florida in the battle for freedom. “Together, we have made Florida the nation’s most desired destination and we have produced historic results. But now’s not the time to rest on our laurels.”

It was the remarks that laid the groundwork for what is expected to be a crazy sprint by the legislature to gain policy wins that could form a platform for DeSantis to run for the White House.

DeSantis notably refrained from using the word “woke” in his remarks – a staple of the political speeches he has delivered in recent months – and wasn’t nearly as combative toward President Joe Biden. He largely focused on more agreeable topics like improving education, alleviating traffic congestion and championing truck drivers, police officers and nurses.

He chastised the “biomedical security state” that required Covid-19 vaccines and vowed to permanently ban mandates related to coronaviruses mitigation, a position that helped him become a conservative star during the Pandemic.

Legislation was filed just before DeSantis spoke that would ban abortion after six weeks except for rape and incest, and it would be illegal to send abortion medications through the mail. DeSantis in his speech nodded to supporting efforts to “protect life” but avoided specifics. He signaled support for the legislative effort to follow the steps taken by his administration.

“Our schools must deliver a good education, not a political indoctrination,” DeSantis said. We can’t allow people to make money off of what our children are capable of doing, and we don’t want to allow them to experiment with science in the first place.

Why Do Universities Use D.E.I. Programs that Make Students Confident? An Analysis by Ron DeSantis et al

DeSantis has said he will formally decide on whether to jump into the 2024 race after the legislature completes its work, a timeline that would mean an announcement in May or June. A group of conservatives, mostly elected Republicans and libertarians, plotted strategy and policy in the Palm Beach neighborhood of the former President during a meeting with a potential team for a potential run by Ron DeSantis.

His out-of-state travel has also picked up. While lawmakers meet over the next 60 days, DeSantis is expected to spend the next couple months on the road promoting his new book, “The Courage to Be Free.” Before he goes to Iowa and Nevada, he will be travelling to Alabama.

DeSantis’ agenda is expected to face little resistance in the Republican-led legislature, where lawmakers have repeatedly succumbed to political pressure from the popular governor in the past and appear closely aligned heading into the upcoming session.

Amna Khalid is a history professor at Carleton College in Minnesota and she wrote in the Chronicle of Higher Education about “Yes, D.E.I. Can Erode Academic Freedom.” Let’s Not Pretend Otherwise” and “The Data Is In — Trigger Warnings Don’t Work.”

There is growing evidence that D.E.I. programs used in schools are not only ineffectual, but actually harmful. It demoralizes people, reduces trust, increases hostility and conflict, and even sometimes reinforces stereotypes or legitimizes prejudicial behaviors.

What is the main complaint of DeSantis et al. Not that knowledge being produced is unreliable, or that students are not getting good jobs. No. They do not like the idea that institutions strengthen their political and cultural power. They would like to use these institutions for their own purposes. They are not committed to academic freedom.

prevent teachers from discussing certain areas of research, or force them to toe particular lines, or drive them toward self-censorship, or weaken tenure protections. These are not moves that enhance academic freedom but undermine it. They aren’t concerned about academic freedom. They are concerned about power.

Florida’s public universities and colleges are grounded in the history and philosophy of Western Civilization; prohibit D.E.I., C.R.T. and other discriminatory programs and barriers to learning; and course correct universities’ missions to align education for citizenship in the constitutional republic and Florida’s existing and emerging work force needs.

Editor’s Note: Sophia Brown is a senior at New College of Florida and editor of the school newspaper, The Catalyst. Her own views are expressed here. Read more opinion at CNN.

But I still wasn’t entirely prepared for his attacks on academic freedom at New College of Florida, the liberal arts college in Sarasota, where I’ve been a student for the past four years.

I always tell people that I chose New College because I wanted to attend a small school with a rigorous academic program. But there’s much more to it than that.

New College: The First Year at a Student-run Newspaper in a Gay and Lesbian Student Association and the First Year of The New College Program

I went to a high school where students would wear shirts bearing the image of the Confederate flag. During my freshman year there, my classmates would draw swastikas on the corners of the papers on my desk when I wasn’t looking. It showed the degree to which they had normalized and created the culture of hatred against me. It was a high school that was tolerant enough to have a Gay Students’ Association, but intolerant enough that some kids would sign each other up as a prank.

New College was a departure from all of that. It has made me very passionate about education in a different way, and that taught me that I do not have to compromise who I am. As an LGBTQ student, I don’t need to leave my identity at the door in order to have the education I deserve. My full identity can sit in the classroom with me because it informs my education and interests in a way that I cannot sever from myself.

I’m now a senior and in my final weeks as a student at New College. It’s been a great time. I’m editor-in-chief of our student-run newspaper, the Catalyst, and have had a complete, well-rounded and rigorous academic experience. But who knows how much longer it will be allowed to continue?

One my friends recently said that the New College is dead. I hope she is wrong. I hope that one day the college can return to what it was: a place where students are free from influence and interference by those who know them and those who don’t, and who really care about what we want to learn.