WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — In the middle of the push by Gov. Ron Desantis and lawmakers to challenge children's books that they deem "inappropriate," a West Palm Beach bookstore owner worries about what our children may not be learning.
Pranoo Kumar owns a bookstore named Rohi's Readery in downtown West Palm Beach.
She pointed out the diverse offerings available at her store.
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"You have books about disability positivity," Kumar said. "You've got books that are in Spanish."
Other books she offers at her store are for children, their parents and other adults seeking to learn about those who are not like them.
There are little bookstores, and there are big political stages.
DeSantis took the limelight in Tallahassee on Tuesday, delivering his "state of the state" address.
Culture wars have been a big part of the governor's agenda.
"Our schools must deliver a good education, not a political indoctrination," DeSantis said Tuesday.
Back at her bookstore, Kumar looks at a place built on diversity and inclusion, the very topics Republicans — who control the Florida Legislature — are looking at with a critical eye.
"Every single book in here is reflective of historically marginalized communities ... the disability community, the neurodiverse community, the LGBTQIA+ community," Kumar said.
And all of that, she noted, is tied into issues for Black and brown communities.
Is a rainbow community be diminished by conservative cultural warriors? Or are the conservative voices holding sway in Florida, protecting against excesses of liberal culture warriors? These questions have created a raging debate.
Republican lawmakers are making their choices, but Kumar offered a counterpoint.
"Children look to adults as the moral compass," she concluded. "So, when we are not doing right by children, and we are not doing right by each other as adults, they internalize that, whether we like it or not, and that is how they treat each other too."
