Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Ron DeSantis Slammed for Quoting MLK to Introduce Anti-Critical Race Theory Bill

Ron DeSantis Slammed for Quoting MLK to Introduce Anti-Critical Race Theory Bill
@therecount/Twitter

Republican hysteria over critical race theory reached yet another crescendo this week when Florida's Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, introduced the "Stop W.O.K.E. Act," or The Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees Act.

Critical race theory is an advanced academic framework scrutinizing how centuries of racist policies like slavery and segregation have influenced current American political, economic, and social conditions. While most Republican efforts up to this point have focused on banning the teaching of critical race theory in secondary schools (the evidence for which is murky at best), DeSantis' bill takes the further step of prohibiting it in private business trainings.


The legislation would deem any teaching of critical race theory an "unlawful employment practice" while also declaring it a "discriminatory practice in education" even at university levels.

In justifying the legislation, DeSantis quoted civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

DeSantis said:

"You think about what MLK stood for, he said he didn't want people judged on the color of their skin, but on the content of their character. You listen to some of these people nowadays, they don't talk about that."

Dr. King's famous quote—which was delivered in a speech that emphasized the "unspeakable horrors" of anti-Black police brutality and said the Declaration of Independence had "defaulted" on its promise that "all men are created equal"—has often been stripped of its context by conservatives dismissing the very concerns King relayed in the speech.

King's own daughter and CEO of the King Foundation, Bernice King, has repeatedly pushed back against this cherrypicking of her father's words.

In a tweet posted just last month, King said:

"He wasn’t assassinated because he said he wanted his children to be judged 'by the content of their character.'

He was gunned down because he was courageous and strategically working to dismantle racism, poverty and militarism."

Others had similar critiques of DeSantis' latest stunt.






Others responded with MLK quotes of their own.



DeSantis is considered a potential frontrunner for the GOP's 2024 presidential nomination.

More from News

Rebel Wilson
Amanda Edwards/Getty Images

Rebel Wilson Reveals She Was Nearly Left 'Permanently Disfigured' By Accident On Film Set

After first becoming friends more than 14 years ago on the set of the first Pitch Perfect movie, Anna Camp and Rebel Wilson are back together in Bride Hard, now with Camp as the bride and Wilson as her best friend, and also a secret agent.

There is some chance of injury in almost any job, but with stunts in an action film, there are bound to be incidents, even if it's just a few stubbed toes.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joe Biden; Alan Ritchson
Bruce Glikas/WireImage; Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Joe Biden And His Family Accidentally Crashed The 'Reacher' Set And Met Star Alan Ritchson

What do you do when you're the former President and you stumble upon a real-live Hollywood film set? Why, fan boy just like the rest of us, of course!

President Joe Biden and his family were heading to dinner on a recent night in Philadelphia when they happened upon the set of the Amazon Prime show Reacher. In fact, he drove right up to the set itself, seemingly without even realizing it.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mike Lee
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

GOP Senator Faces MAGA Backlash Over Plan To Sell Millions Of Acres Of Public Land

Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee is facing harsh criticism—including from Team MAGA—over his proposal to sell off millions of acres of public land in the American West owned by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service to supposedly create more affordable housing.

Lee claimed in his proposal that there is an "extensive process for interested parties like States and local governments to nominate land for disposal to meet housing and community needs," noting that it specifically exempts national parks, monuments, and federally designated wilderness areas from potential land sales.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Trump Ripped For Complaining That Americans Get 'Too Many' Federal Holidays Off Work

While it was ultimately former President Joe Biden who established Juneteenth as a federal holiday, President Donald Trump—who once campaigned on that promise—took to Truth Social on Juneteenth to whine about the number of "non-working holidays" Americans get, claiming that it costs businesses "billions of dollars."

Juneteenth is derived from June 19, 1865, when Union troops led by General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and declared that all enslaved African Americans in the state were free.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman sitting up in bed as a man sleeps next to her.
Florida State University Researchers Find Predictors for Infidelity in New Study
(Wodicka/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

The Biggest 'They're Definitely Cheating On Me!' Signs People Ignored

When our partner commits suspicious behavior, it's easy for us to jump to conclusions.

Most of the time, the conclusions we jump to are 100% wrong and are just our imaginations playing tricks with us.

Keep ReadingShow less