Florida Department of Education rejects 54 math textbooks, citing 'references' to critical race theory

54 mathematics textbooks were blocked from being used in classrooms by the Florida Department of Education because of references to critical race theory.

The board said that it rejected 54 math books out of 132 submitted for review because they incorporated prohibited topics or strategies, and that the texts were removed from consideration.

The legacy of racism continues to be felt through laws and policies that exist today. Conservatives have been targeting the discipline over the past two years, accusing it of dividing Americans despite it not being taught at the grade school level.

The Common Core and the inclusion of social-emotional learning were some of the issues raised by the board. SEL has been identified by many on the right as a gateway for critical race theory concepts, pointing to programming that emphasizes controlling emotions and maintaining thriving relationships.

The move by Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran and his colleagues was praised by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is up for reelection this fall and has become one of the highest-profile conservative politicians in the country.

He said in a statement that some publishers tried to paint over an old house built on the foundation of Common Core, and indoctrating concepts like race essentialism for elementary school students.

One of the most closely-divided states in the country, Florida has been led by a raft of conservative policies by the new governor. He recently pushed through new abortion restrictions that will ban the procedure after 15 weeks, signed into law a controversial "Don't Say Gay" bill, and enacted a restrictive voting bill in a state that in recent years had pride.

Florida has become a national leader in education, according to a statement by Corcoran.

Other states continue to follow Florida's lead as we continue to reinforce parents rights by focusing on providing their children with a world-class education without the fear of indoctrination or exposure to dangerous and divisive concepts in our classrooms, he said.

In June of last year, the Department of Education voted to ban critical race theory from being taught in state classrooms in order to prevent students from learning false history.

Anna Eskamani is the first Iranian-American to hold a state legislative office in Florida.

She said that she wouldn't be surprised if Florida Republican leaders banned Algebra from high schools.