DeSantis Slams Biden Claiming Students Are “Our Children,” Not Parents’, While at School
April 29, 2022 Updated 11:31 A.M. ET
ORLANDO (FLV) – Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday parents have a “fundamental role” in their child’s education system after President Joe Biden made comments Wednesday that students are “not somebody else’s” but are “our children” while at school.
“And I think Biden and his folks believe you send them to school, butt out, and the school’s job is to indoctrinate what they think your kids should learn or what your kids should believe,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis made the comments at a Thursday town hall with Laura Ingraham on Fox News. He responded to remarks from Biden claiming the students are the education system’s children.
“We always talk about these children. They are not someone else’s children. They are our children,” Biden said. “They are all our children. The reason you are our teachers of the year is because you recognize that.”
DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education bill, also called the “Don’t Say Gay Bill” by left-wing activists. The bill provides parents more access to information to their children’s personal education experience and prevents children from Pre-K through 3rd grade from being taught about gender and sexual identity.
“Why would you not want parents involved?” DeSantis asked. “But they don’t want parents involved because they know that will represent an obstacle to them indoctrinating them the way they want to do that.”
The Florida Department of Education rejected 41% of submitted math textbooks citing attempts to indoctrinate students. The department said the materials included Critical Race Theory, inclusions of Common Core, and Social Emotional Learning in mathematics.
President Biden Wednesday said the rejected math textbooks are a way to “score” political points.
“I mean did you ever think, even you younger teachers, did you think we’d be teaching and be worrying about book burnings and banning books. All because it doesn’t fit somebody’s political agenda,” Biden said. “American teachers have dedicated their lives to teaching our children and lifting them up. We’ve got to stop making them the target of culture wars.”
But DeSantis has repeatedly said schools should be a place where students focus on math and reading instead of teaching students about sexuality.
“We draw a very strong line in florida. We want education. We do not want indoctrination,” DeSantis said. “The reason why we believe that is because the parents have a fundamental role in the upbringing and the education and the well-being of their kids.”
Governor DeSantis also signed the “Stop WOKE Act” meant to eliminate discussions of racism, white supremacy, and privilege in schools and workplaces. The bill passed in the state senate in a 24-15 vote along party lines.
