FLORIDA LAWMAKERS PASS ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL
Florida lawmakers passed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill which restricts speech in public school classrooms on sexual orientation and gender identity, sparked by one lawmaker’s concern that children were being “trendy” in coming out as gay.
The legislation — titled “Parental Rights in Education” (HB 1557) — now heads to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has suggested he will sign it into law. If so, it goes into effect on July 1.
The 22-17 vote came after weeks of national attention over the measure, which has grabbed the attention of international newspapers, Hollywood actors, and the White House.
What has caused the most contention is one section of the bill: It prohibits public school teachers from “instruction” about sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten-3rd grade — though it’s already not taught in those grades — and limits it to “age appropriate” in other grades.
The bill, however, doesn’t provide a bright line between “classroom instruction” and “classroom discussion,” which the bill’s supporters say it won’t prevent.
The proposal also prohibits schools from withholding information from parents about a student’s “mental, emotional or physical health.” And parents could sue a school district for violations under the legislation.
Democrats continued to condemn the measure as homophobic. Referring to those who identify as LGBTQ, Democratic Sen. Tina Polsky, asked, “Why do we have to pick on them, marginalize them, single them out? Why do we want to be part of this systemic discrimination that is going on across the country.”
