President Joe Biden delivered a pointed critique of what he described as attempts to "ban books" Tuesday while designating three sites as part of the new Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument.

Tuesday marked the 82nd anniversary of Till's birth, and in remarks delivered at a White House signing ceremony, the president heartily pushed back on education reform from Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and others.

SECRET SERVICE: BIDEN DOG WOULD BE ‘PUT DOWN’ IF NOT PRESIDENT’S PET

"At a time when there are those who seek to ban books, bury history, we're making it clear — crystal, crystal clear. While darkness and denial can hide much, they erase nothing," Biden stated. "We can't just choose to learn what we want to know. We have to learn what we should know."

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had previously commented on the timing of Biden's Tuesday proclamation in the face of efforts to shape public school curricula in Republican-led states.

"Let's not forget what we have seen these past several months as we witness extreme officials in Florida and across the country lie about American history," she told reporters during Monday's White House press briefing. "The most recent example shamefully promotes a lie that enslaved people actually benefited from slavery."

In the text of the proclamation itself, Biden referred to Till's "story" as one "shaped by the fight for civil rights."

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

"These places contain historic objects that illuminate the complicated fabric of our Nation and the injustice and inequality that Black people continue to experience today," the president said of the three Till sites in Illinois and Mississippi. "They are places where we can learn about and reflect on the specific, painful events that ended Emmett Till's life and the larger history of Black oppression, resistance, and resilience, which ultimately culminated in a movement that bent our Nation's laws toward justice."

You can watch Biden's remarks in full below.