We call upon the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (AMTE) to take immediate action and implement measures that prioritize the safety and inclusion attendees from marginalized groups, especially those targeted by the Florida legislature, to their upcoming conference in Florida. It is crucial for AMTE to acknowledge the existing risks faced by these marginalized communities in this region and actively work towards creating a safe environment for all participants.

Florida has gained a reputation in the past year for enacting educational policy that fosters fear and hatred towards multiple marginalized groups. In May, the NAACP issued a travel notice stating, “Florida devalues and marginalizes the contributions of, and the challenges faced by African Americans and other communities of color.” This was followed by educational policy and book bans that rejected ideas embodied in the AP African American Studies curriculum such as intersectionality, Black queerness, and the Black Lives Matters movement. Instead, they have allowed curricula distorting slavery and climate change. Beyond oppressive educational laws, Florida has become a state that is dangerous for Black Americans and for women and their bodily autonomy. Many organizations followed suit, including the Florida Immigrant coalition, the League of United Latin American Citizens​, Equality Florida​, Spectra, and Particles for Justice.

It is also clear that the Florida legislature does not view 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals as equal or in some cases, deserving of legal protection. Florida has enacted CS/SB 1674, mandating trans individuals must use public restrooms, including airports, that correspond with the sex assigned to them at birth, even if they have legally updated their gender markers on their birth certificates and licenses. CS/SB 1580 allows healthcare providers to opt out of healthcare services on the bases of moral, ethical, or religious beliefs.  Should a trans member of AMTE need to use the restroom at the airport or need medical care, they could be denied or even physically harmed with no legal protection.

Additionally, Florida enacted HB 1557, banning “instruction” about sexual orientation or gender identity “in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.” Legal experts have pointed to the phrase “developmentally appropriate” as expediently vague. “Sometimes they’re intentionally vague to move the site of where the political fight is going to take place” said Charlton Copeland, a professor at the University of Miami School of Law. The Movement Advancement Project gives Florida its lowest rating on LGBTQ policy and the Human Rights Campaign have condemned Ron DeSantis for his “record-shattering” “slate of extreme anti-LGBTQ+” bills.

We make it clear: The AMTE conference in Florida is not a safe event for those targeted by the Florida legislature.

We believe it is not only morally imperative but also professionally responsible for AMTE as an influential organization dedicated to mathematics education to prioritize the safety and well-being of all its conference participants but also to adhere to its own values it purports such as its long-term goal of “supporting understanding of how issues of social and racial justice undergird all of our work” and that they would “strengthen our own ability to serve as advocates for those whose voices have been muted and prepare a generation of teachers who are willing to address the systemic problem of inequity in our schools, nation, and world.” It is incomprehensible to understand why AMTE insists on creating a scholarly space that looks like conferences past when there are new, pressing problems facing the teachers and students of Florida. 

We strongly urge AMTE to listen to our concerns and take immediate action by implementing comprehensive safety measures, collaborating with local organizations, and providing resources that will enable scholars, especially those affected by Florida’s legislation, to participate in the conference without fear of discrimination or harm.

With urgency, the undersigned.

This petition draws on resources cited by the authors of the MAA open letter. Artwork from Rae Senarighi, @Transpainter.

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Addendum from the author of the petition:

AMTE’s performative allyship towards 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals has not gone unnoticed. Make no mistake: With AMTE not budging from removing the conference from Florida, it is asking its members to be complicit in Florida’s legislative agenda. If AMTE members book a hotel room at the Rosen from Wednesday to Saturday, they will effectively pay $78 in lodging tax. This means that for every 100 AMTE rooms reserved at the price on the website, around $7,800 will be paid in Florida taxes. Assuming there are two people per room and that attendance matches last year’s AMTE conference, 300 rooms will be reserved, thus giving the state at least $23,400, which could be allocated to enacting harmful laws. Of course, this does not include other expenses that members will incur.

It is difficult to quantify the harm that the Florida legislature will cause because, at the end of the day, this is not about the numbers or dollars. Even one student that could be mentally or physically harmed by the decisions of the Florida legislature and Department of Education is one too many.

We need to practice imaginative allyship. We do not need to “urge” or “pressure” we need to act. Other organizations have made the tough decision to cancel their events. We need to imagine a future where everyone is safe. To do that, we need to imagine and go beyond our basic training—this simply means making sure that you do not stop at minimal effort activity (see clicktivism). I acknowledge the expenses and logistics are factors, but allyship is never easy and these should not be the sole reasons to stop the organization from ensuring an inclusive environment. Here are some actions to that could be done (thank you to those who attended the community conversation; I am also not saying that AMTE should do all of these, but hey at least one of these would be better than the current state):

For AMTE:

1. Offer a hybrid option.
2. Include all the travel advisories on the registration page. I’ve provided the links in this petition. Ctrl+c then ctrl+v.
3. Include a conspicuous link to your leadership message on the registration site.
4. Change the leadership wording from “Strive to select future conference sites that are not in states with oppressive legislation” to simply “Select future conference sites that are not in states with oppressive legislation.”
5. Include the location of all-gender restrooms in the conference program. If there are no such restrooms at the hotel, fight for them.
6. Change the opening session from the AMTE standards and highlight the harm that the Florida legislature has done to students from marginalized communities.
7. Conspicuously display all the harmful legislation that is being enacted in Florida throughout the conference, perhaps on posters or ID badges. An “out of sight, out of mind” mentality feeds into marginalization.
8. Invite and pay for the registration of Floridian K-12 teachers and staff.
9. Pay for the registration of early career scholars who want to find community, learn from others, and share their work, especially those on the job market. We do not have the same flexibility to "choose" our conferences.
10. Determine the amount of tax dollars paid by the membership to attend the conference and donate that amount to organizations fighting for the liberation of marginalized groups. These organizations aren’t difficult to find. You can start here or here.

For the academics with power (let’s be real, who attends AMTE?):

1. Delay your registration until AMTE has ensured a hybrid option for those who do not feel safe going to Florida.
2. Confront the leadership of AMTE, especially close colleagues and collaborators, and urge them to enact any of the items outlined above.
3. Explicitly commit to those on the job market or job applicants to academic jobs that not attending this year’s AMTE conference will not be held against them.
4. Advocate for early career scholars who decide not to attend for safety reasons, especially when it comes time for tenure, promotion, or reappointment decisions. Commit to them, in writing, about how you will be vocal when the department or college considers their case.
5. Hold other academics with power accountable to this work. Those with less power within the academy may not feel safe speaking up. The work does not and should not solely originate from those with less power.
6. Be imaginative! Your allyship is important in this moment. Read a story on Black or trans joy. It will give you ideas on what makes this joy possible and work to ensure that this joy is cultivated.