It should come as no surprise to longtime readers that Florida legislators are moving to expand the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law far beyond its original framework. Three bills have been introduced in the Legislature that would further restrict the ability of schools to teach students about sex and gender. And a new rule under consideration at the State Board of Education would block classroom instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity for students all the way through 12th grade.
Any or all of these changes could come into force in the near future. Republicans dominate the Legislature in Florida. And Gov. Ron DeSantis has every incentive to continue his pre-presidential-run efforts to lock down the “concerned parent” vote. But it’s galling that the GOP had the nerve to pretend for over a year that this expanded crackdown on LGBTQ students and teachers wasn’t always the plan.
When they were strong-arming the “Parental Rights in Education Act” through the Legislature last year, Republicans presented it as necessary to prevent teaching children up to third grade about subjects they couldn’t handle at such a young age. DeSantis, ahead of signing the bill, specifically referred to kindergartners’ being taught “they can be whatever they want to be” as a justification for the measure. Older students, meanwhile, have been covered by a ban on materials that are “not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”
It’s galling that the GOP had the nerve to pretend for over a year that this expanded crackdown on LGBTQ students and teachers wasn’t always the plan.
Now Florida Republicans want to widen these restrictions with a slew of changes. One bill under consideration in the House would require schools to teach “that sex is determined by biology and reproductive function at birth; that biological males impregnate biological females by fertilizing the female egg with male sperm;…
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