New York Times corrects liberal column that mischaracterized Florida's critical race theory bill

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The New York Times had to issue a correction Monday to a left-wing columnist's piece that broadly mischaracterized Florida legislation about race-based trainings in schools and businesses.

Writing about the Stop WOKE Act that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign, Charles Blow claimed the "so-called anti-critical-race-theory law" "invoked the idea that teaching that a person ‘must feel guilt, anguish or other forms of psychological distress’ should be banned."

However, Blow left out that the bill referred to anyone who was forced to feel any such distress due to their "race, color, sex, or national origin."

The Times correction appeared in Tuesday's edition of the newspaper.

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"A column on Monday about Gov. Ron De­Santis mischaracterized a Florida bill that would ban the teaching of critical race theory," the Times wrote. "It would prohibit promoting the concept that people ‘must feel guilt, anguish or other forms of psychological distress because of actions, in which the individual played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, sex or national origin.’ It would not ban lesson plans that may make people feel guilt."

Blow's column, however, is largely the same as it was when it first appeared online Sunday. Journalist Jeryl Bier shared an image from the WayBack machine showing Blow's original language – "This one invoked the idea that a lesson that may make a person ‘feel guilt, anguish or other forms of psychological distress’ should be banned.'" – was nearly identical to how it reads now, using the term "teaching" rather than "a lesson."

The New York Times did not respond to a request for comment.

Blow, who primarily writes pieces blasting Republicans, ripped into DeSantis as Donald Trump "2.0" and compared his policies to Jim Crow in the column.

Like the Parental Rights in Education bill that DeSantis recently signed into law, the Stop WOKE Act has been the subject of fierce criticism and occasional misinformation.

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A Miami-Dade chapter of the AFSCME, the country's largest trade union for public employees, falsely claimed earlier this month that the bill prohibits the teaching of slavery and the Holocaust in public schools.

DeSantis press secretary Christina Pushaw tweeted earlier this month that the governor "proposed the Stop WOKE Act to provide protections from discriminatory DEI [Diversity, Equity and Inclusion] content in post secondary education and corporate workplaces."

"The left knows that most Americans support common sense legislation, including legislation that protects Floridians from CRT-inspired discrimination," Pushaw told Fox News Digital. "So in order to attack Governor DeSantis, corporate media resorts to fabricating false narratives about Florida. The only surprise here is that the Times would actually issue a correction." 

DeSantis has called critical race theory "state-sanctioned racism" and is expected to sign the bill into law.

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Fox News' Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report. This article was updated with comment from Pushaw.