Democratic Club speaker advocates for access to Black history education

The Longboat Key Democratic Club started the new year with its monthly luncheon and speaker series on Jan. 2 at the Sarasota Yacht Club.

David Wilkins, the president of the Manasota Association for the Study of African American Life and History, came to speak to the club about how ASALH is addressing concerns over the lack of Black History taught in Florida’s public schools.

Wilkins began by speaking about education policy in Florida. He said the Stop Woke Act, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law in 2022, prohibits training for workers and lessons for students that violate any of the concepts about race and racism listed in the law.

“This vagueness of the banned concepts listed in the bill has led to uncertainty about the impact on lessons on race and racism and has also led teachers to avoid these lessons,” said Wilkins in his talk.

Wilkins explained the goal of the Manasota ASALH is to start a movement prioritizing Black history in schools not only locally but all over Florida. The organization recently opened the Manasota ASALH Freedom School, which offers African and African American history to K-12 students in Manatee and Sarasota counties. 

“We're doing the Freedom School because we need to do it,” said Wilkins. “We'll do it as long as we need to do it, but we want this material taught to all kids in all schools, so that we don’t have to have the Freedom School. It is a reinforcement of the obligation to teach African American history with the added requirement that this commitment be certified to the commissioner.” 

Wilkins touched on the importance of teaching Black history in schools and gave examples of how it affects world history as a whole.

“Learning our history of race and the predictable backlash accompanies any meaningful and potentially successful effort to build a truly multiracial society,” Wilkins said.

Program Chair of the club Francine Achbar said that the club loves seeing the progress ASALH is doing and that Wilkins’s talk was very well-received.

The Manasota ASALH is the largest branch in the national network with over 400 members. Along with opening the Freedom School, the branch provides college scholarships and hosts monthly online Black history programs.  

“I was asked, ‘So what do we do given where we are in Florida today?’” said Wilkins. “We educate and we inform just as we're doing here today. We find an opportunity to tell the truth and challenge those who aren't telling the truth. We have to resist this attack on this democracy we say that we love and then be prepared to find alternatives as we're doing with the Freedom School.”