Call the "woke busters": Ron DeSantis sends volunteer army to snatch books from students' hands

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis may not want a reputation as a book banner, but that's not slowing down the Republican's efforts to knock as many books out of the hands of students, both college-age and younger. In fact, Florida Republicans' war on reading is only escalating, with the GOP engaged in a full-scale gaslighting project to deny what is clearly a campaign of threats and intimidation to keep teachers from letting kids read.

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Sorry, Twitter, but Florida's war on books is no joke. Ron DeSantis wants to keep kids from reading
Meanwhile, as Republican politicians play "don't believe your lying eyes" games, they are also amassing a volunteer army of wannabe censors who are ready to descend on schools to make sure no errant books slip past their anti-reading dragnet.

The Manatee Patriots, a right-wing group in Florida's Manatee County, recently put out a recruitment call for "woke busters" to be the "eyes and ears and boots on the ground in the schools" to stop educators from "filling the libraries with these books." It did not take much digging to discover that the "woke busters" have extremely broad ideas about what constitutes "inappropriate" reading material. Their parent group, Manatee Patriots, recently celebrated what they claim was a successful effort to force a public library to take down a display celebrating LGBTQ history. They objected to the library's alliance with a local youth group that serves LGBTQ teens, claiming it's "the first stage of Grooming" and "Porn" for the group to offer information to kids about safer sex.

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"More things found in the Library," their site breathlessly reads. The offensive materials they flagged? Michelle Obama's memoir and a history of Barack Obama's presidency.

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Yep, they not only want to erase sex education but documented evidence that the U.S. once had a Black president. These are the folks who are worming their way into Florida schools, based on DeSantis' censorship orders, to decide what students should be allowed to read.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/call-the-woke-busters-ron-desantis-sends-volunteer-army-to-snatch-books-from-students-hands/ar-AA174iQ2

[sinkingfeeling]

1. We need to station people outside of churches and parochial schools to take away those

bibles containing all that sex stuff.

[dchill]

3. Sounds like war to me.

[peggysue2]

13. Doesn't merely sound like a war

It is war being waged in broad daylight and without an iota of shame. What DeSantis is facilitating in Florida is what the Christian Nationalists, authoritarians of every stripe would impose on the entire country.

The American Taliban and its accompanying Purity Police have arrived.

They won't stop. Neither can we.

[hlthe2b]

2. Well, if they try to literally grab a book out of someone's hands, my guess is several idiots

may face assault charges--even in Florida. And picturing them in a common lock-up--even for a short time is an interesting proposition.

[shenmue]

6. Do not fck with librarians.

Ever.

[ratchiweenie]

4. Michelle Obama's memoir and a history of Barack Obama's presidency.

Seems to me that those alone would be grounds for a good lawsuit.

[Ray Bruns]

14. Yea, that's not about racism at all, is it?

[Lovie777]

5. History - Germany......

if they refuse to give them the books then jail?

[samsingh]

7. isn't banning books woke in itself?

[Zambero]

8. The practice of directing hatred toward a word

"Woke". And conversely "anti-woke" or "woke-busters" is to be applauded. Those examples and others (such as Critical Race Theory) have become surrogates to be used as a weapon against groups and individuals who do not represent the MAGA ideal of what America should look like. It would be politically disadvantageous to go after blacks, women, Jews, Muslims, LGBTQ, immigrants, intellectuals, scientists, and others directly. The hatred is deep-seated. The misapplied use of "woke" and "CRT" as sanitized terms allow the haters to freely express their contempt for those who are considered detrimental to the ultimate goal of a white, authoritarian, "Christian" society. The practice of dog-whistling has been taken to the next level. And in states such as Florida and Virginia, the rhetoric has translated to top-down executive-level public policy, particularly as it related to public education. White robes and public book burnings are no longer necessary, as extremism has gone mainstream while much of the media remains oblivious.

[Baitball Blogger]

9. Isn't that called theft?

[niyad]

11. And assault?

[Ferrets are Cool]

31. Unfortunately, you would have to find a cop willing to arrest the perp.

[Baitball Blogger]

32. If this truly happens, I think the goons will be very visibly filmed and face the

wrath of social media. De Santis may have no limits to cruelty, but I think that's his Achilles Heel.

[niyad]

10. Then I guess that I would be arrested for assault, as my first instinct would be

Last edited Fri Feb 3, 2023, 12:45 PM - Edit history (1)

to clock them with the book in my hands, or catch them in the groin with the corner of said book. Hope it is a thick hardback.

[Baitball Blogger]

12. First lesson of self-defense. Use the book to ram it upward into the nose bridge.

Then run in the opposite direction.

[niyad]

15. "Remember to SING-solar plexus, instep, nose, groin."

[Baitball Blogger]

16. Looks like we can all use a few lessons in self-defense.

[niyad]

17. You read my mind.

[Baitball Blogger]

19. I did a search on youtube and found your reference!

LOL!

[niyad]

22. One of my favourite scenes in the movie. When I was taking a self-defense class

wayyyyyyyyyyy back, the instructor told us, esoecially if we were wearing heels (which I always did) to smash the kneecap and scrape down, taking lots of skin. Of course, there is the issue of raising one's foot, and maybe going off-balance.

I carry keys with a pepper spray canister.

[Baitball Blogger]

24. Maybe it's time to arm students with legal self-defense tools,

I don't know if they can carry pepper sprays on campus. In Florida they'll probably be allowed to carry guns before pepper spray.

So, I suggest something performative like an aerosol can that can spray a gust of confetti with a very, smelly, strong flowery perfume.

[niyad]

39. There we go! There used to be a company that sold skunk spray, including a

bracelet that one could pop open. Travel size cans of hairspray as well.

[ZonkerHarris]

18. If anyone tries to steal your personal property call the police and have them arrested.

[vercetti2021]

20. Woke busters?

It sounds like a really bad Ghostbusters parody porn knock off. Hopefully only thing busted is their fucking lips that they try to take books out of kids hands physically.

Not saying violence is always the answer but it is an option against Nazis and I say use it

[niyad]

21. If they actually take them out of kids' hands, charge them with child abuse.

[Richard D]

23. Are they . . .

. . . wearing brown shirts?

[Ferrets are Cool]

33. That was my first thought.

[Richard D]

35. So sad . . .

. . . we even think such things now.

[3825-87867]

25. So...what happens to those books

the DeSantis Shirts confiscate?

451?

[Fiendish Thingy]

26. Florida is an open-carry, stand your ground state

Somebody is gonna get shot,

[ancianita]

28. No, Florida is NOT open carry. It is stand your ground.

Under Florida law, individuals who seek to carry concealed guns in public are required to obtain concealed weapons licenses from the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. “Constitutional carry” and “permitless carry” laws eliminate the requirement. It is not legal in Florida to openly carry a weapon.

Janet Reno got open carry banned in Florida in 1987.

[Fiendish Thingy]

30. Florida is a "shall issue" state for concealed carry permits.

Somebody is gonna get shot trying to take “woke” books away from someone.

[ancianita]

38. Fine. But it's not open carry.

[ancianita]

27. Manatee Patriots are on FB. Also located at Mixon Fruit Farms here in Bradenton.

https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=manatee%20patriots

I'll ask the manager. If she knows anything, I'll find out.

If she admits Manatee Patriots meet there, I'll never do business there again, and will spread the word about these anti-education people.

omg I'm in the belly of the beast

[HubertHeaver]

34. It would be appropriate they would meet at a fruit farm!

[ancianita]

29. Just to add a bit more, here is Salon's article.

https://www.salon.com/2023/02/03/call-the-woke-busters-ron-desantis-sends-volunteer-army-to-snatch-books-from-students-hands/?fbclid=IwAR2VMM24uVXVBUQm4SecL6CavKUD9yt_c0p1ZdnsFaTiHmRokPbKtMUYVmk

[bronxiteforever]

37. +1 thank you for posting this article.

[bronxiteforever]

36. We are getting closer to Gordon Liddy's sick wish

You can't kill ideas. But you can sure shoot the people who hold them.— G. Gordon Liddy