State Rep: Martin Luther King Jr. Day Doesn't Count as Teaching
Black History in Schools Now, the Southern Christian Leadership
Council (SCLC) of Tallahassee has filed a grievance with the
Justice Department, claiming that Florida high schools are not
properly teaching the history of African-Americans in the United
States, in part saying that when teachers teach about black
Americans only during Black History Month, it may be like
"segregating" the coursework in American history classes.
Orlando Democrat Geraldine Thompson has hopped on the cause,
saying that it's nice to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day
but that doing so doesn't count as teaching African-American
history. "School districts confuse events with instruction,"
Thompson says in a statement. "While observing the Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. Holiday is a commendable event, it is not
providing instruction on the broad spectrum of African American
contributions to American society. While I am concerned to see
the development of an adversarial situa