Tuesday, February 14, 2023

Such Blatant Hypocrisy

 

Being on the right side of history is a popular desire these days, and many opportunities are afforded by Black History Month. It offers progressives and companies the chance to stand with the Black community in expressing pride in their multitude of achievements that many people are unaware of. If you doubt those achievements, a quick online search will enlighten you.

Unfortunately, many companies citing solidarity with Black people and an abhorrence of racism do so as a kind of corporate virtue-signaling, while their true character is to be found elsewhere.

Such is the case in Ron DeSantis's Florida, where the governor's corporate contributors reveal a startling hypocrisy. And that hypocrisy envelops many national brands, all quite recognizable.

Amazon, AT&T, Coca-Cola, Comcast, DoorDash, General Motors and Walmart have all made public statements in celebration of Black History Month. Google posted online on 1 February: “Learn how Google is recognizing and celebrating Black voices, joy and success this Black History Month.”

But the Center for Political Accountability found that each of these companies donated significant sums of money to political groups that prominently supported DeSantis.

Another egregious offender, at least before relations with DeSantis went south, is Disney.

... early in the election cycle ... Disney contributed $50,000 to his re-election campaign and $125,000 to the Republican party of Florida, which supported his campaign and inauguration.

The list goes on, and you need only read the Guardian article to get more names. 

What makes this so shameful? As I have written previously, DeSantis is on a campaign to control what Florida's children read and learn about Black history.

 Earlier this month, the second-term governor announced plans to block state colleges from having programs on diversity, equity and inclusion as well as critical race theory, or CRT, which examines the ways in which racism was embedded into American law and other modern institutions, maintaining the dominance of white people.


The DeSantis administration also blocked a new advanced placement course on African American studies from being taught in high schools, saying it violates state law and is historically inaccurate. In the new framework, topics including Black Lives Matter, reparations and queer theory are not part of the exam.

And last year, DeSantis signed the “Stop Woke Act” that restricts certain race-based conversations and analysis in schools and businesses. The law bars instruction that defines people as necessarily oppressed or privileged based on their race.

A US state shelved m book – yet all I was doing was trying to help people live their lives
Fox Fisher
Read more

The governor has imposed sweeping restrictions on books in public schools, forcing some teachers to remove books from their libraries or use paper to cover up their shelves. They face felony charges if unsanctioned books are present in their classrooms.

ThThe pattern of repression is clear, and it is spreading.

At least 25 states have considered legislation or other steps to limit how race can be taught, according to an analysis by Education Week. Eight states have banned or limited the teaching of critical race theory or similar concepts through laws or administrative actions.

     All of which reminds us of the true nature of the corporate imperative: to make money, to pursue its fiduciary obligations to shareholders, and to lie with ease when it benefits them.

At  least we still have journalists willing and able to provide a transparency that many would be more than happy to obscure.


 

4 comments:

  1. Woke is/ was a term to mean being aware!
    Just what does Santis wish us to be unaware of?

    TB

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He seems particularly indisposed to truth that will make White Americans feel uncomfortable, TB. And let's face it, White Americans form a substantial part of his base in Florida, as they will should he run for the Republican presidential nomination.

      Delete
  2. Excellent article Lorne !
    Read it just after Owen’s article re Michael Harris & Healthcare
    But I’m left with an uneasy feeling, I’ll just sketch here

    It about your last sentence.. what what people think..
    I mean ‘people in general’ - whether Canadian or American

    Where to we ‘get’ much of ‘what we think’..
    said otherwise .. ‘how do we form our opinions’
    Said another way.. ‘who is supplying them ?’
    Mainstream Media ? Social Media ? Church Pulpits ?
    Our Elected ‘Public Servants ? (via Mainstream Media)
    Polls ? (the Horror !)

    Where do people in Florida get ‘their current beliefs’ ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, Sal (I assume it is you), it seems to me that with so many sources of information and disinformation, one of the main jobs of educators is to cultivate critical-thinking skills. With the kind of embargo on truth currently in place in Florida and pending in many other states, that task becomes almost impossible to achieve.

      The tendency toward lazy thinking has likely always been part of our makeup as a species, and with the current glut of sources of facts and 'alternative facts,' there is likely a greater inclination to embrace extremes, presented as they are in binary terms, saving many that hard work of actually thinking.

      That laziness, as we see, can exact a very, very high price.

      Delete