The Florida Senate, controlled by the Republican Party, passed the bill HB 1557, entitled “Parents’ Rights in Education” and popularly known as “Don’t Say Gay”. The project, however, has caused controversy in the US state.
On Tuesday (8), the bill was approved with 22 votes in favor and 17 against. It aims to ban teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms.
Now, the controversial bill has been sent to the Republican governor’s desk. Ron DeSantiswho expressed his support for the measure.
If approved by DeSantis, a staunch conservative who has a history of supporting anti-LGBTQ measures in the state, the bill would go into effect in July.
His office declined CNN’s request for comment on the Senate approval, pointing to comments he made last week about the legislation.
What does the bill propose?
Under the law, school districts “may not encourage discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in the primary grades or in a manner inappropriate for the age or development of students.” However, the text does not make clear what would be considered “age” or “development” appropriate.
In addition, the measure would require districts to “adopt procedures to notify a student’s parents if there is a change related to health, mental, emotional or physical well-being.”
Republican State Representative Joe Harding, a co-sponsor of the bill in the Florida House of Representatives, previously told CNN that the bill is intended to discourage school officials from asking about a student’s gender identity or pronouns without including their parents in the conversation. .
Disapproval
Opponents argued that the ban would have a negative impact on an already marginalized community. They pointed to data showing that LGBTQ youth have lower rates of attempted suicide when they have access to spaces of affirmation.
Additionally, advocates for the LGBTQ community argue that this can lead to parents of some students learning about their sexual orientation or identity without the student’s knowledge or consent.
They also fear that the bill will restrict students’ ability to speak confidentially with school counselors, some of whom are the only mental health resource available to them.
Schools are already hostile environments for LGBTQ children in the United States: Nearly 33% of LGBTQ students ages 13-21 said they missed a day of school in the course of a month because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable, and more than 77% said avoided going to extracurricular school events because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable, according to the most recent National School Climate Survey released by the Gay, Lesbian, and Heterosexual Education Network in 2019.
According to the GLSEN report, 98.8% of LGBTQ students said they heard “gay” used in a negative way, and over 95% of them heard homophobic slurs at school.
Opponents of the bill denounced legislation allowing parents to file civil suits against the school district for any possible violation of its rules, arguing that doing so would open the door for educators to face bombing and endless litigation.
The legislation has drawn scrutiny from Democrats in the state and elsewhere, including President Joe Biden, who vowed last month to protect LGBTQ youth from such measures.
Student reaction
Members of Generation Z (defined as people born between 1997 and 2012) have led massive demonstrations and school strikes for weeks in protest against the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
The teens traveled to Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, to meet with lawmakers and defend the veto of the legislation.
“We wanted to show our government that this is not going to stop,” said Will Larkins, a Florida teenager who organized a mass walkout at his high school. “People are the ones in power. [sic] and what they are doing does not represent us, especially marginalized groups.”
Students across the state walked out of their classrooms in protest of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill this month.
“Let’s not be silent,” high school student CJ Walden told The Miami Herald . “We will always exist. Even if the law goes into effect.”
*With input from Scottie Andrew, Devan Cole and Zachary B. Wolf of CNN.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
