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!
Agreed! I don't understand it. A person I know is openly talking about moving there next year. Mixed race marriage. I asked her about it and never got a satisfactory answer as to how one can consider a permanent move to what is appearing to be a increasingly fascist state. I plan to stay the hell away and pray for the people of good conscience who live there.
I know Adam. I don't understand it either. I have friends that moved there last year and they insist that it is not that bad but, what does that mean. Not that bad? Why would you choose “not that bad” when you can live “free.”
Consider the fact that the most powerful voting bloc in FL is the retirees, not the parents or other people who have been mostly marginalized. Those retirees want low taxes, sunshine and perhaps Donald Trump. This is why DeSantis is thinking he will beat Trump at his own game.
I was lived in Orlando for 8 years and just visited St. Pete to see friends, one of whom is an elementary school teacher. She told me that things are OK in her district, but she had heard stories about Manatee. Now this. Here on Substack, Twitter, the things that we read are the egregious cases. It’s highly probable that there is quite a bit of variance across the state. Much may rest on whether a particular district has a zealot like Baggett. Or Moms4Liberty going to school board meetings and riling people up. Squeaky wheels are making a lot of noise. Red, Wine, & Blue are suburban moms who are fighting back, against book bans and to support all kinds of kids.
Parents will not fight back until it affects them. So expect a fight when DeSantis starts removing more AP courses, that will affect their kids college applications.
Fear plays a large part in the silence of those who do no support these racist, homophonic bullies. Parents need to form support groups to oppose the bullies - strength in numbers. Silence is an ally of oppression.
How can these Florida laws not be violating the First Amendment? you
He got 31% of registered voters’ votes. Only 53% of registered voters voted for governor. Not a landslide! People must vote or fascists, a minority, will take over. Remind you of another country in another time?
One could make a similar argument about nearly every election that's ever taken place in this country. The election itself is best seen as a very good proxy for overall sentiment, sort of like a massive poll with miniscule margins of error (the larger the sample size, the less uncertainty in the results).
It was a landslide and is an indictment on the voters in the state.
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.
I hope kids, parents, media specialists, librarians, other teachers, and principals sue as well. And Cathy, I spent most of my life in Virginia, so I’m rooting for the VA State Senate Dems, too. People are working to bring the book bans here to NC, too.
I think the woman should be made famous thru the media ! It's absolutely disgusting that this woman has so much power with her open hostility and bigotry ! The way she bullies certain students should not be allowed ever ! Why hasn't she lost her job ?????
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.
I can picture her in a nazi uniform, making kindergarteners march in the hallway, reciting deathsantis slogan, " Don't say gay! " while brandishing a whip !!
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!
Agreed! I don't understand it. A person I know is openly talking about moving there next year. Mixed race marriage. I asked her about it and never got a satisfactory answer as to how one can consider a permanent move to what is appearing to be a increasingly fascist state. I plan to stay the hell away and pray for the people of good conscience who live there.
I know Adam. I don't understand it either. I have friends that moved there last year and they insist that it is not that bad but, what does that mean. Not that bad? Why would you choose “not that bad” when you can live “free.”
Consider the fact that the most powerful voting bloc in FL is the retirees, not the parents or other people who have been mostly marginalized. Those retirees want low taxes, sunshine and perhaps Donald Trump. This is why DeSantis is thinking he will beat Trump at his own game.
I guess one can say that they ARE "living free" if one were being sarcastic. I just don't know how far it goes. Or will go.
I was lived in Orlando for 8 years and just visited St. Pete to see friends, one of whom is an elementary school teacher. She told me that things are OK in her district, but she had heard stories about Manatee. Now this. Here on Substack, Twitter, the things that we read are the egregious cases. It’s highly probable that there is quite a bit of variance across the state. Much may rest on whether a particular district has a zealot like Baggett. Or Moms4Liberty going to school board meetings and riling people up. Squeaky wheels are making a lot of noise. Red, Wine, & Blue are suburban moms who are fighting back, against book bans and to support all kinds of kids.
Parents will not fight back until it affects them. So expect a fight when DeSantis starts removing more AP courses, that will affect their kids college applications.
Fear plays a large part in the silence of those who do no support these racist, homophonic bullies. Parents need to form support groups to oppose the bullies - strength in numbers. Silence is an ally of oppression.
How can these Florida laws not be violating the First Amendment? you
Silence is compliance. Period.
You may have noticed he won reelection in a landslide. Flohuduh voters love this stuff. It's totally sick.
He got 31% of registered voters’ votes. Only 53% of registered voters voted for governor. Not a landslide! People must vote or fascists, a minority, will take over. Remind you of another country in another time?
One could make a similar argument about nearly every election that's ever taken place in this country. The election itself is best seen as a very good proxy for overall sentiment, sort of like a massive poll with miniscule margins of error (the larger the sample size, the less uncertainty in the results).
It was a landslide and is an indictment on the voters in the state.
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 !
I hope kids, parents, media specialists, librarians, other teachers, and principals sue as well. And Cathy, I spent most of my life in Virginia, so I’m rooting for the VA State Senate Dems, too. People are working to bring the book bans here to NC, too.
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.
Atrocious might be her defining word.
Well, you know she has a LOT of papers to fill out. So she’s scribbling to get through all of them ...
I think the woman should be made famous thru the media ! It's absolutely disgusting that this woman has so much power with her open hostility and bigotry ! The way she bullies certain students should not be allowed ever ! Why hasn't she lost her job ?????
The Escambia County school board feels a lot like the U.S. Supreme Court in its current iteration. That's not a favorable comparison.
Let one of the members know what you think. I did, on his Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/Vote4PaulFetsko
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.
I can picture her in a nazi uniform, making kindergarteners march in the hallway, reciting deathsantis slogan, " Don't say gay! " while brandishing a whip !!
And definitely "getting off."
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.
Spent 7 winters there, but can no longer spend a dollar in that state.
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.