TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — The Rev. Al Sharpton spoke during a "Save our History" rally at the Florida Capitol Wednesday.
Sharpton, who leads the National Action Network (NAN), joined Rev. RB Holmes and others to march from Holmes’ Bethel Missionary Baptist Church to the capitol to protest Florida's involvement in relation to a high school Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies course installation in the state.
Holmes, who the president of the Tallahassee chapter of the National Action Network, marched with Sharpton to the capitol beginning at 11:30 a.m. The rally began after 12:40 p.m.
Hundreds of people marching from Bethel Missionary Baptist Church have arrived at the Capitol to advocate for diversity, equity & inclusion in Florida high schools after Governor DeSantis proposed eliminating AP African American studies @abc27 pic.twitter.com/NGsIwrFtja
— Gabriella Mercurio (@gmerc_) February 15, 2023
Along with Sharpton, the Rev. Holmes, Florida State Representative Fentrice Driskell and State Senator Shevrin Jones spoke during the rally.
The Associated Press reported last month the Florida Department of Education rejected the AP course because it deemed content in the course was historically not accurate and violated state law.
The College Board released a statement last week following the release of a revised version of the course responding to Florida's opposition to the AP African American Studies course.
Florida officials objected to some of the authors and topics that were part of the course that included black-queer studies and black feminism.
Those authors and topics were not included when the initial framework was released this month.
The College Board, which oversees Advanced Placement courses, denied claims the course was influenced by political pressure.
