State education bill expands Asian American representation

FLORIDA IS THE FIRST REPUBLICAN-LED STATE TO ENACT THE LEGISLATION

By Amanda Friedman Alligator Staff Writer

When she was a student at William S. Talbot Elementary, Keira Lee was only one of three Asian American children at the school. Without proper representation in the classroom, tales from her Chinese immigrant grandparents served as the only source of Asian American history education she received as a child.

“I mostly learned about my culture through my family,” Lee said.

Now an 18-year-old Buchholz High School senior, Lee applied what she’s learned from her family to launch the Asian American Student Alliance, an organization dedicated to providing a safe space for her high school’s Asian American and Pacific Islander student population.

A new bill signed into Florida law could allow students like Lee to see their efforts reflected on a statewide level with the introduction of AAPI history into the public school system.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 1537 into law May 9, requiring AAPI history in K-12 curriculum. The legislation’s enactment marks a milestone in a two-year-long battle to make AAPI history a mandatory part of Florida public school education. Make Us Visible Florida Director Mimi Chan led the state’s effort to integrate AAPI history into K-12 classrooms.

“It took a lot of work and determination in order to get this passed,” Chan said. “Asian American history is American history.”

Florida is the first Republican-led state to pass legislation requiring AAPI instruction in primary and secondary schools. The bill includes education on World War II Japanese internment camps and the immigration, citizenship, civil rights, identity, culture and contributions to American society of the AAPI community as part of the impending curriculum.

Chan, an Orlando-based activist and martial arts instructor, felt compelled to spearhead the initiative after she witnessed the drastic increase in Asian American hate crimes and discrimination after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I wanted to see what could be done to stop these attacks, to be preventative, to ensure our