HISTORY

Why Florida is So Desperate to Hide This Speech From Students

The oppression of Black people and their resistance is taboo

Dr. Allison Wiltz
Momentum
Published in
9 min readAug 30, 2023

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Henry Highland Garnet, albumen silver print, c.1881. Per the National Portrait Gallery | Public Domain

Resistance is not a dirty word, but if you try to teach students about Black Americans' efforts in resisting slavery, they may try to wash your mouth with soap. And that's because Florida's Department of Education has deemed these topics taboo. For instance, censors struck an African American Studies course from the official state curriculum, claiming that the course lacked "educational value and historical accuracy." While they did not identify any specific historical inaccuracies that should be corrected within the course materials, they did provide examples of the information they found problematic. For instance, Florida censors took issue with the inclusion of a political speech delivered by twenty-seven-year-old Henry Highland Garnet, a well-known newspaper editor and pastor of a Presbyterian Church in Troy, New York, called "An Address to the Slaves of The United States."

At the National Negro Convention in 1843 in Buffalo, New York, free Black Americans gathered to promote ideas that, at the time, were considered radical — obtaining equal rights and abolishing slavery. Rising leaders such as Fredrick Douglas, Charles B. Ray, and Charles L. Remond were in attendance…

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Momentum
Momentum

Published in Momentum

Momentum is a blog that captures and reflects the moment we find ourselves in, one where rampant anti-Black racism is leading to violence, trauma, protest, reflection, sorrow, and more. Momentum doesn’t look away when the news cycle shifts.

Dr. Allison Wiltz
Dr. Allison Wiltz

Written by Dr. Allison Wiltz

Black womanist scholar with a PhD from New Orleans, LA with bylines in Oprah Daily, Momentum, ZORA, Cultured. #WEOC Founder