On Wednesday, July 19, under the guidance of Governor Ron DeSantis, the Florida State Board of Education approved a new history syllabus for its public schools that will henceforth teach students that African-Americans benefited from slavery as it taught them "life skills." It has already earned severe backlash from the state teachers’ union, which stated that the updated Black history syllabus was a “step backward.”The new 216-page long standards of the Florida State Board of Education use controversial language about how “slaves developed skills which, in some stances, could be applied for their personal benefit.” The recent modifications are a part of Florida’s 2023 standards in Social Studies.Lakota Man@LakotaMan1So, Ron DeSantis says slaves were “developing new job skills.” I say they were brought here against their will and suffered unspeakable human rights violations. Who’s right? Me or him? pic.twitter.com/HFu3ID3CKD" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/HFu3ID3CKD176703594So, Ron DeSantis says slaves were “developing new job skills.” I say they were brought here against their will and suffered unspeakable human rights violations. Who’s right? Me or him? pic.twitter.com/HFu3ID3CKD" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/HFu3ID3CKDAmidst this development, Florida’s conservative Governor Ron DeSantis has been slammed by the Florida Education Association, whose President said in a press conference:“Governor DeSantis is pursuing a political agenda guaranteed to set good people against one another, and in the process, he’s cheating our kids. They deserve the full truth of American history, the good and the bad.”Not only the state teachers’ union, but Ron DeSantis has also received severe backlash from netizens, like this particular Twitter user:Harry Sisson@harryjsissonWHAT THE F*CK? New teaching standards in Florida say African Americans received some “personal benefit” from slavery. Ron DeSantis and the fascist Republicans are trying to erase our history. It’s blatant racism. Absolutely disgusting.906288WHAT THE F*CK? New teaching standards in Florida say African Americans received some “personal benefit” from slavery. Ron DeSantis and the fascist Republicans are trying to erase our history. It’s blatant racism. Absolutely disgusting.“FLORIDA: WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU?”: Ron DeSantis and Florida come under fire for being pro-slaveryApart from stating that Black people benefited from slavery, the new standards of the Florida State Board of Education also mentioned how African-Americans were perpetrators of violence during race massacres. As per NBC, a part of the document read:“Instruction includes acts of violence perpetrated against and by African Americans but is not limited to 1906 Atlanta Race Riot, 1919 Washington, D.C. Race Riot, 1920 Ocoee Massacre, 1921 Tulsa Massacre, and the 1923 Rosewood Massacre.”The new standards are to be taught in Florida public schools at both middle school and high school levels.Florida Education Association@FloridaEA@VUEPresident @carmenrosew @AnnaForFlorida @LWVFlorida @strongflschools @RitaForFlorida @GfSenator @DwightBullard @orange_cta @EqualGroundFL There were several other speakers who spoke in opposition to the proposed standards, asking the board to table them until they can be revised. When public comment ended, the board voted to adopt them. There was no discussion.71@VUEPresident @carmenrosew @AnnaForFlorida @LWVFlorida @strongflschools @RitaForFlorida @GfSenator @DwightBullard @orange_cta @EqualGroundFL There were several other speakers who spoke in opposition to the proposed standards, asking the board to table them until they can be revised. When public comment ended, the board voted to adopt them. There was no discussion.This was publicly blasted by the state teachers’ union, The Florida Education Association, which comprises around 150,000 teachers. It called the new standards “a disservice to Florida’s students and are a big step backward for a state that has required teaching African American history since 1994.”It further added during the press conference that in the absence of a full and honest picture of real American history, the students can never be equipped for the future. President of the union Andrew Spur continued by saying:“Florida’s students deserve a world-class education that equips them to be successful adults who can help heal our nation’s divisions rather than deepen them.”As soon as the news of the updated standards of the Florida State Board of Education surfaced online, netizens ranging from politicians to common people to educationists, and organizations severely criticized Governor Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida. Check out some of these comments below:BrooklynDad_Defiant!☮️@mmpadellanI just heard about how DeSantis has Florida schools teaching kids that slavery had benefits because the slaves learned skills, and all I can say is...FLORIDA: WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU? pic.twitter.com/Kjozsev4Nu64281572I just heard about how DeSantis has Florida schools teaching kids that slavery had benefits because the slaves learned skills, and all I can say is...FLORIDA: WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU? pic.twitter.com/Kjozsev4NuIsaiah Martin@isaiahrmartinEveryone in America needs to know that Ron DeSantis is rewriting history in plain sight. pic.twitter.com/PXn75JjOje310160Everyone in America needs to know that Ron DeSantis is rewriting history in plain sight. pic.twitter.com/PXn75JjOjeCarlos Guillermo Smith@CarlosGSmithRon DeSantis’s Board of Education is indoctrinating Florida’s youth into ignorance.New mandated “clarifications” must be included while teaching Black history in public schools.Like that enslaved people “developed skills” that “could be applied for their personal benefit,” pic.twitter.com/O9HfmOkFN9443235Ron DeSantis’s Board of Education is indoctrinating Florida’s youth into ignorance.New mandated “clarifications” must be included while teaching Black history in public schools.Like that enslaved people “developed skills” that “could be applied for their personal benefit,” pic.twitter.com/O9HfmOkFN9Lesley Abravanel 🪩@lesleyabravanelSince Grand Wizard DeSantis has dictated that Florida public schools teach our kids how slavery helped the slaves by teaching them skills, it’s only a matter of time before teachers must teach how some Jewish concentration camp prisoners also learned skills in the labor camps. pic.twitter.com/vh5l1DQMUA777409Since Grand Wizard DeSantis has dictated that Florida public schools teach our kids how slavery helped the slaves by teaching them skills, it’s only a matter of time before teachers must teach how some Jewish concentration camp prisoners also learned skills in the labor camps. pic.twitter.com/vh5l1DQMUADr. Betsy R Ph.D LCSW 🏖💙🌊@BetsyRi66304373Good evening my friends. Already put in over 40 hrs this week. So I'm headed to the beach! Just a reminder. Fl. Gov. DeSantis wants our schools to teach that slavery had benefits. Because white folks taught them skills. And this fool wants to be President! Have a great night. pic.twitter.com/ADqewWXwGw648162Good evening my friends. 💙 Already put in over 40 hrs this week. So I'm headed to the beach! Just a reminder. Fl. Gov. DeSantis wants our schools to teach that slavery had benefits. Because white folks taught them skills. And this fool wants to be President! Have a great night. pic.twitter.com/ADqewWXwGwA netizen calls the Florida Governor racist. (Image via Twitter/LanaQuest aka RosaSparks)A netizen slamming Ron DeSantis. (Image via Twitter/The Tennessee Holler)A netizen says that Florida's governor deserves to be behind bars. (Image via Twitter/Ricky Davila)A tweet calls Ron DeSantis a dangerous man. (Image via Twitter/The Lincoln Project)As per NBC South Florida, the recent updates to the Black history curriculum were required under a controversial 2022 law that Governor Ron DeSantis termed “Stop Wrongs To Out Kids and Employees Act,” colloquially called the “Stop WOKE Act.”What’s interesting is that a spokesperson from the Florida Department of Education African American History Standards Workgroup told NBC that they “proudly stand” behind the new standards which were “comprehensive and rigorous instruction on African-American history.” They also added how they were disappointed that their research was devalued and reduced to “a few isolated expressions without context.”Governor Ron DeSantis has so far not commented on the controversy. However, this is not the first time his administration has messed with the Black history curriculum. Earlier in January 2023, his government boycotted a new Advanced Placement Course on African American Studies from being taught in public high schools stating it violates state law and was historically inaccurate.