News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by josephcsible on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @11:43AM (#34695055)
"no books at all" is a result of them voluntarily making things worse to try to win political points. That's not what any law required.
Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by esporx on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @11:45AM (#34695087)
(same person, different account, HN is trying to throttle me)

No, "no books at all" is a result of them trying not to go to prison. The law is very unclear about what it requires.

Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by remarkEon on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @11:57AM (#34695298)
You can read the law in question here[1]. Parents must have a venue to object to instructional content, and porn in school libraries is already illegal under a prior law about giving porn to minors. What is unclear about this?

[1] https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2022/1467/BillText/er/...

Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by hgielatan on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @12:04PM (#34695410)
(still same person, let's keep it rolling)

The consequences of a felony charge make it so that clarity needs to be crystal, and as so many articles have already discussed, what's unclear is what books could result in that felony charge.

Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by remarkEon on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @12:44PM (#34696060)
You can read the Florida statute here[1]. It is crystal clear. Whichever journalists wrote those articles choose to not actually read the law, for some reason.

[1] https://m.flsenate.gov/Statutes/847.012

Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by enragedcacti on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @12:46PM (#34696090)
Classic DeSantis bait-and-switch, the actual text says:

> b. Any material used in a classroom, made available in a school library, or included on a reading list contains content that is pornographic or prohibited under s. 847.012, is not suited to student needs and their ability to comprehend the material presented, or is inappropriate for the grade level and age group for which the material is used.

The first clause is very clear and gives cover to say "its just about pornography, whats the problem???" and the second and third clauses are astoundingly vague and provide ample confusion to effectively ban whatever books a single parent doesn't like until a review panel issues a decision. Even if the decisions can be made promptly, the law is so vague it provides cover for political operatives to make whatever decision they want.

fwiw I agree that there has been a very confusing conflation in the media about what violations consitute a felony.

Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by remarkEon on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @12:55PM (#34696251)
Okay, but that's a different argument than "these teachers will go to jail now", which is what some people are pretending is happening but isn't. Is your argument now that parents should not have a forum to influence what is taught in the classroom? Or is your issue that they'll make decisions you don't agree with?
Re:Mandatory DEI statements are becoming the norm in academi... by enragedcacti on Tuesday February 07, 2023 @01:12PM (#34696560)
My issue is that almost all of the "anti-woke" laws signed by DeSantis are astoundingly vague and make it extremely easy to submit objections but costly to combat objections, leading to a regime of defacto bans on controversial material or lessons regardless of their educational or developmental value. HB 1557 with its 'vigilante' style enforcement is a great example of this.

I believe children have rights and autonomy and at appropriate ages should have access to information their parents may find objectionable. There should of course be limits and parents should have input, but the law as written is not attempting to find any reasonable balance in my opinion.