Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis threw a fit in January over the idea of teaching Advanced Placement African American Studies in high schools, so he banned his education department from allowing the subject to be taught in these classes. Several Republican states followed the anti-woke warrior’s lead.

In September, Virginia allowed a stripped-down version of AP African American Studies that didn't include so-called “divisive concepts.” Meanwhile, students in Arkansas are permitted  to take the course, but they do not receive graduation credits.

Why do so many conservatives oppose this particular course of Black history? CBS News contributor Lisa Ling recently had a front-row seat in an AP African American Studies class in Los Angeles that shed some light on the issue.

Sitting among the high school students, Ling asks if people should consider the course controversial and asks the question of who gets to teach history. The video clip below shows the conversation:

In the segment, which aired on Tuesday (Oct. 10) on CBS Mornings, Susan Miller Dorsey High School Social Studies teacher Donald Singleton invited CBS News to experience his AP African American studies class.

Ling also spoke exclusively with Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. 

As former Miami-Dade County Public Schools Superintendent, Carvalho took issue with DeSantis’ education policies, especially the rhetoric of DeSantis and other conservatives who criticize Critical Race Theory (CRT).

CRT is a college-level academic framework to analyze systemic racism that is not taught in elementary or secondary schools. Republicans have used misinformation about CRT to stir up its political base to win elections.

The College Board, the nonprofit organization that administers AP programs, spent more than a decade developing AP African American Studies, drawing on the expertise and input of scholars, including Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr., the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University.

Under the College Board’s timeline, 60 high schools nationwide piloted the course in the 2022-2023 academic year, and hundreds more will offer the program this academic year. Things will get even more interesting next year when all schools can begin offering AP African American Studies.

CBS Mornings airs on CBS stations at 7 a.m. ET. It also streams on CBSN and Paramount+, and is available on cbs.com and cbsnews.com.