Florida’s controversial ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill that bans “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” passed in the state House on Thursday.
The Parental Rights in Education bill, which critics call the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill passed on a 69-47 vote, according to NBC News.
An amendment that required schools to tell a student’s parents if their child wasn’t straight within six weeks of learning that information was withdrawn before the vote.
The bill bans schools from encouraging “discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.”
Rep. Joe Harding, the Republican lawmaker who introduced the bill claims it “empowers parents” and improve the quality of life for Florida’s children.
“Creating boundaries at an early age of what is appropriate in our schools, when we are funding our schools, is not hate,” Harding said. “It’s actually providing boundaries, and it’s fair to our teachers and our school districts to know what we expect.”
However, critics say it would open school districts up to lawsuits from parents who believe any conversations about LGBTQ issues in the classroom is inappropriate and could harm LGBTQ youths mental health.
“We are in distress because this bill is yet another attack on our community,” Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith, a Democrat who is openly gay said on the House floor. “This bill goes way beyond the text on its page. It sends a terrible message to our youth that there is something so wrong, so inappropriate, so dangerous about this topic that we have to censor it from classroom instruction.”
The bill now heads to Florida’s Republican-controlled Senate, where it is expected to pass.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has already signaled his support for the legislation and is expected to sign it into law.
