The Forgotten Ron DeSantis Book
The Florida governor’s long-ignored 2011 work, "Dreams From Our Founding Fathers," reveals a distinct vision of American history and how it should influence the present.
www.theatlantic.com
In short, in the book DeSantis has to create a Constitution that is not so much aspirational as imaginary in order to align himself with the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr. and others who used the notion of the Founders’ benign original intentions to actually liberate Black people and increase equality. But whereas these figures wanted to talk about the Black past and present, and the impact of racial domination on everyone Black or white, DeSantis insists that a return to first principles means never bringing up slavery except to praise those who ended it.
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The question of whether or how the American Founders were complicit with slavery might seem to be a seemingly minor, even technical, matter compared with other legislative maneuverings in Florida. But for DeSantis, it’s the beginning and the essence of what he opposes. The Florida Commission of Education said that the recently passed Stop WOKE Act targeted “revisionist history” while the Florida House speaker said, “The bill provides assurance for parents that some of the most difficult lessons about our nation’s history and current events are taught accurately while treating everyone as individuals.” A state senator cited it as a move back to “historical facts” instead of “indoctrination.” There’s room for disagreement about how to view and teach the intertwined legacies of the American Revolution, slavery, and the Constitution. But as his own book suggests, it is DeSantis himself who ignores certain facts, is prone to identity-driven circular logic, and dismisses what Black voices, past and present, have to teach.
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There is no doubt that desantis is a very intelligent and calculating man. But that "virtue" makes him that much more dangerous than his equally as ignorant detractor and possible competitor, trump. Where trump's ignorance led us down a road of debauchery and chaos; desantis, if elected, could lead us down a road of organized and well constructed fascism. Such a controlled governance could set back freedom and democracy in this country for decades.
