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Florida Mandates Communism History for Students Starting 2026
Starting sixth grade, Florida public schools will require instruction on the evils of communism, covering Stalin to Maduro. The curriculum, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, takes effect in 2026.
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Florida will require every public school student from sixth grade through high school to receive annual instruction on the history of communist regimes, starting with the 2026-2027 school year. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the law, which covers the Soviet Union, China, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, and the recent fall of Nicolás Maduro.
Education officials said the curriculum details mass deaths under Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and Castro, the failure of collectivism, and the benefits of free enterprise and private property. The mandate builds on Florida's existing Victims of Communism Day, which already required at least 45 minutes of instruction on the same regimes.
"The truth will set us free," DeSantis said when signing the underlying bill. "We will not allow our students to live in ignorance, nor be indoctrinated by Communist apologists in schools."
The standards, approved by the State Board of Education in November 2025 and updated this year, include the capture of Maduro to keep the lessons current. Former Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas said at the time: "With the resurgence of communist ideologies across the United States and throughout the world, it is more important than ever for students to understand the catastrophic failures and human suffering caused by communist regimes."