Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law tak effect today. Its impact is already beg felt – The Hill

Contents:

• SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' L EXPAND THROUGH 12TH GRA FLORIDA
• FLORIDA JT PASSED THE "DON'T SAY GAY" BILL. HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS FOR KIDS
• LAWSU FILED AGAST FLORIDA'S SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW WH DAYS OF SIGNG
• OPPONENTS CALL IT THE ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL. HERE’S WHAT IT SAYS.
• FLORIDA'S ERNOR SIGNS NTROVERSIAL LAW OPPONENTS DUBBED 'DON'T SAY GAY'
• FLORIDA’S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ LAW TAK EFFECT TODAY. ITS IMPACT IS ALREADY BEG FELT

SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' L EXPAND THROUGH 12TH GRA FLORIDA

It looks like this le would make impossible to do much stctn at all, " Lra McGnis, of the LGBTQ advocy group PFLAG, prevly told ABC law was dubbed "Don't Say Gay" by crics for aimg to rtrict curriculum that clus history, lerature and more that touch on LGBTQ inti.

But Florida’s Parental Rights Edutn act — which crics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — has sudnly sparked a natnal war of words.In recent weeks, lears of global rporatns, edorial boards of major newspapers and Hollywood actors have all weighed on the proposed legislatn, wh some llg “eply disturbg” and others “nonntroversial.” Kate McKnon ripped to the bill durg a recent “Weekend Update” segment on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” The hosts of the ABC talk show “The View” mulled over the policy for more than seven mut on air last month. Ron DeSantis, who has said he supports the bill but hasn't signed yet, and Disney CEO Bob Chapek.Supporters of HB 1557 say would give parents greater ntrol over their children’s tn, vditg their “parental thory.” Conversely, opponents say would unfairly target the LGBTQ muny — particularly gay and trans stunts —  and is “pretendg to solve a problem that don’t exist.”So, which is ?For starters, cricism that the “Don’t Say Gay” bill do not fact say “gay” anywhere s text is te. The bill, which passed Florida’s Senate last week and the state’s Hoe of Reprentativ Febary, do, however, nta the terms “sexual orientatn” and “genr inty,” each twice.But legal experts say that whether the bill prohibs the word “gay” self is a “distractn.”“In the same way that cril race theory isn’t beg tght schools, that hasn’t stopped people like the ernor of Florida om ployg the term ‘cril race theory’ efforts to engage certa kds of polil manvergs,” said Charlton Copeland, a profsor at the Universy of Miami School of Law who wr about sexual orientatn and genr inty.

“The ‘Don’t Say Gay’ moniker is a moniker about a certa polil amg of this suatn.”Beyond brandg, a re argument over the bill centers around whether would prohib the “stctn” or “discsn” of sexual orientatn.The bill’s sponsors have emphatilly stated that the bill would not prohib stunts om talkg about their LGBTQ fai or bar classroom discsns about LGBTQ history, cludg events like the 2016 adly attack on the Pulse nightclub, a gay club Orlando.

FLORIDA JT PASSED THE "DON'T SAY GAY" BILL. HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS FOR KIDS

But crics nicknamed HB 1557 the “don’t say gay” bill, warng isn’t necsary and mak some stunts feel unsafe by sglg out LGBTQ material as dangero and appropriate. Dennis Baxley (R-Ola) the bill’s Senate sponsor who said he was addrsg “social engeerg” that uld rult more children intifyg as gay or transgenr. Phaw said that not cludg a topic a curriculum do not mean won’t be brought up classroom stctn, potg to a gui ed by Palm Beach County Schools tend to create a “safer place for all stunts.” The guidance clus fns of terms related to sexual orientatn and genr inty — cludg gay, lbian and transgenr — that teachers are enuraged to e when applible.

“It fely is a possibily that they uld go above the first part of the language which ps the rtrictn at third.” The word ‘gay’ People on Facebook and Twter have said that Florida Republins want to ban the word “gay” school. “GOP’s 2022 platform: Ban books, Ban abortn, Ban Black history, Ban transgenr teens, Ban sayg ‘gay’ and Ban votg,” said Dean Obeidallah, a left-leang rad host and edian, on March 11. “But get this — the GOP tell they are all about ‘Freedom.’” On SNL’s “Weekend Update” segment,  anchor Col Jost told st member Kate McKnon, who is gay, that the bill “means that you n’t acknowledge that ‘gay’ exists at all.” McKnon then slammed the legislatn, sayg, “I am eply gay — sorry, eply ncerned.

It jt seems like this is gog to make kids gay and trans — sorry, prsed and suicidal.” The claims n largely be attributed to the legislatn’s “don’t say gay” nickname, ed by  Equaly Florida. The legislatn do not lerally prohib Floridians om sayg the word “gay,” but do prohib “classroom discsn about sexual orientatn or genr inty.” The preamble of the bill go further, sayg is meant to bar “classroom discsn” on those topics. The Florida Senate passed the ntroversial so-lled “Don’t Say Gay” bill on Tuday, sendg the Republin-backed legislatn banng LGBTQ stctn primary schools to Gov.

LAWSU FILED AGAST FLORIDA'S SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW WH DAYS OF SIGNG

The proposed law, often referred to by crics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, bans public school districts om teachg about sexual orientatn or genr inty krgarten through the third gra, or “ a manner that is not age-appropriate or velopmentally appropriate for stunts”—language that crics say uld extend the ban to higher gra levels. ” Read more: Kid of the Year Falist Kai Shappley, 11, Tak on Lawmakers Her Fight for Trans Rights What impact uld the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill have?

Shevr Jon, Florida’s first openly gay Florida state senator, who told the legislative body: “To those who thk you n legislate gay people away, I’m sorry. A lawsu has been filed agast the State of Florida over the newly signed Parental Rights Edutn law, dubbed the "Don’t Say Gay" law by crics, jt three days after was signed.

OPPONENTS CALL IT THE ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL. HERE’S WHAT IT SAYS.

Ron DeSantis displays the signed Parental Rights Edutn, aka the Don't Say Gay bill, flanked by elementary school stunts durg a news nferencey, March 28, 2022, at Classil Preparatory school Shady Hills. "Members and supporters of the LGBTQ muny attend the "Say Gay Anyway" rally Miami Beach, Florida, March 13, 2022. AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTOpponents Call It the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill.

Ron DeSantis of Florida is expected to sign Hoe Bill 1557, which supporters ll the “Parental Rights Edutn” bill, but that opponents refer to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. ” Meanwhile, many nservativ have argued that the bill is limed spe and has been misterpreted by s of that has obscured the text of the bill self, which is plex — if at tim vague — and is about much more than gay rights.

FLORIDA'S ERNOR SIGNS NTROVERSIAL LAW OPPONENTS DUBBED 'DON'T SAY GAY'

Instctn on genr and sexualy would be nstraed all 97-101: Classroom stctn by school personnel or third parti on sexual orientatn or genr inty may not occur krgarten through gra 3 or a manner that is not age appropriate or velopmentally appropriate for stunts acrdance wh state is the sentence that has earned the bill the “Don’t Say Gay” language is vague and subject to terpretatn. No “classroom discsn” is a broad phrase, and uld mean that teachers wh a stunt wh gay parents should not talk about those fai wh the entire class.

” More about Dana GoldsteA versn of this article appears prt on, Sectn A, Page 13 of the New York edn wh the headle: Crics Call It the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill. The ntroversial law, dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by s opponents, is set to take effect July.

The platiffs Thursday’s lawsu clu Equaly Florida, an LGBTQ advocy anizatn; Fay Equaly, a New York-based nonprof; a 17-year-old sophomore Palmetto, Florida, who intifi as gay; an 18-year-old senr Osprey, Florida, who intifi as gay; the parent of a transgenr fifth-grar Florida; three same-sex upl livg Florida wh young children; and a middle-school public teacher Grand Ridge, Florida. The bill, which some opponents have lled "Don't Say Gay, " was signed by DeSantis on Monday. The "Don't Say Gay" moniker om crics of the measure who blast this ia and sist this policy will hurt LGBTQ children.

FLORIDA’S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ LAW TAK EFFECT TODAY. ITS IMPACT IS ALREADY BEG FELT

"Florida's HB 1557, also known as the 'Don't Say Gay' bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed to law, " the statement read. Florida’s Parental Rights Edutn law — known to s crics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law — will officially take effect today.

Smh, who 2016 beme the state’s first openly gay Lato lawmaker, said he wasn’t exactly surprised that the bill had been troduced. Worry over whether the bill — dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by s crics — vlat the First Amendment rights of public school teachers and stunts has also been wispread. He said Democrats llg the measure the “Don’t Say Gay” bill were lyg to children and g them as “polil pawns” to further an agenda.

“They’re jt ntug the fear mongerg om ssn, ” says Jon Harris Mrer, public policy director for Equaly Florida, scribg 2023 legislative chang that fall squarely to the more-of-the-same-homophobic-nonsense tegory. DeSantis support of anti-gay vio lled bad strategy, worse msage.