Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Wednesday that will require Florida's public schools to teach lessons about the history of communism.
DeSantis signed the bill at the Hialeah Gardens Museum on the 63rd anniversary of the launch of the Bay of Pigs invasion. The museum honors Assault Brigade 2506, the group of Cuban exiles who participated in the failed attempt to topple Fidel Castro.
The bill, SB 1264, requires instruction on communism for students in grades as young as kindergarten, though the lessons must be “age appropriate and developmentally appropriate” while covering certain topics.
It goes into effect in the 2026-2027 school year, and includes a number of topics:
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- "The history of communism in the United States and domestic communist movements, including their histories and tactics."
- "Atrocities committed in foreign countries under the guidance of communism."
- "Comparative discussion of political ideologies, such as communism and totalitarianism, which conflict with the principles of freedom and democracy essential to the founding principles of the United States."
- "The increasing threat of communism in the United States and to our allies through the 20th century, including the events of the Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China and other mass killings from communist regimes."
- "The economic, industrial, and political events that have preceded and anticipated communist revolutions."
- "The communist policies of Cuba and the spread of communist ideologies throughout Latin America, including the roots of the Communist Party of Cuba and guerilla forces throughout Latin America."
"Not only is it lost about the evils of communism, you go to a lot of institutions in our own country, a lot of these colleges, you know, they try to rehabilitate communism, they try to whitewash communism," DeSantis said. "Sometimes they'll say 'well true communism has never been tried,' all this, so there's apologists for communism in our society."
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The bill will also create the Institute for Freedom in the Americas at Miami-Dade College at the Freedom Tower "to preserve the ideals of a free society and promote democracy in the Americas."
"We're gonna tell the truth about communism in the state of Florida. We're gonna tell the truth about the evils of communism," DeSantis said. "We're gonna tell the truth about the unprecedented death toll of the 20th century at the hands of communist tyranny, 100 million killed at the hands of communist regimes spreading from China to the Soviet Union to Cuba."
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