What Florida's 'Don’t Say Gay' bill actually says

Contents:

• FLORIDA WANTS GAY TOURISTS. A BILL RTRICTG LGBTQ TOPICS SCHOOLS SENDS THE WRONG MSAGE, CRICS SAY.
• HERE'S WHAT FLORIDA'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL WOULD DO AND WHAT WOULDN'T DO
• LARGT U.S. GAY RIGHTS GROUP ISSU FLORIDA TRAVEL ADVISORY
• LOS ANGEL COUNTY BANS OFFICIAL TRAVEL TO FLORIDA OVER ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ LAW
• LOS ANGEL COUNTY BANS OFFICIAL TRAVEL TO FLORIDA OVER NTROVERSIAL 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW

FLORIDA WANTS GAY TOURISTS. A BILL RTRICTG LGBTQ TOPICS SCHOOLS SENDS THE WRONG MSAGE, CRICS SAY.

“There’s a sense of eedom to Florida’s beach, the warm weather and the myriad activi – a draw for people of all orientatns, but pecially appealg to a gay muny lookg for a sense of belongg and acceptance, ” says the Vis Florida page promotg top gay beach, a Pri Gui and LGBTQ-iendly state’s official tourism marketg arm says “gay” a lot s promotnal materials. But Florida is now the spotlight for legislatn that crics have dubbed the “don’t say gay” bill that was passed this week by the state Senate but has not yet been signed to law by Gov. ” Opponents have said the proposed law uld harm LGBTQ kids, or children whose parents are gay; Print Bin lled “hateful.

They’re hopeful that the angry rponse to the bill won’t keep visors om supportg those gay-welg bed-and-breakfasts, bars, rtrants, and cultural Florida cled to ment on the bill and s potential impact on tourism.

2 ln domtic visors to the state 2019 — or nearly 4 ln people — intified as lbian, gay, bisexual or another orientatn that was not heterosexual. ”“But if anyone actually boytts Florida bee they’re upset about the lack of sex and genr theory stctn our krgarten through 3rd gra classrooms, I’m nfint that our state is better off whout them, ” she Lrdale, the tourism bure that clus gay favor Fort Lrdale and Wilton Manors, has been dog “ser, mted outreach” to the muny sce 1996, Print and CEO Stacy Rter said an terview. “We’re hopg that people n separate the hateful thgs that are gog on Tallahassee om the really progrsive thgs we’re dog here, ” she Covello, CEO of OutCoast, a platform that markets the state as an LGBTQ-clive statn, said she has already heard om some people who have lled Florida homophobic or asked how she uld promote to visors.

HERE'S WHAT FLORIDA'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL WOULD DO AND WHAT WOULDN'T DO

“This is the time more than ever to travel to Florida, to be seen, to be heard, to say gay, ” she said avoidg the state would hurt bs like rtrants, shops and hotels that are owned by members of the muny and harm progrs ci that are beg more clive. “The ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill is hostile to our muny and bad for the statn, ” he said the statement.

”Hunter O’Hanian, executive director of the Fort Lrdale-based Stonewall Natnal Mm & Archiv, said the 2022 bill follows the pattern of earlier anti-gay efforts the state the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s. “But at the same time the public policy lears … are givg everyone the msage that beg gay is somethg that is not to be spoken of.

LARGT U.S. GAY RIGHTS GROUP ISSU FLORIDA TRAVEL ADVISORY

”O’Hanian said the mm and library, where nearly 40 percent of visors are om out of state, have put out ltle dish ntag ps that say “Say Gay. More than 150, 000 travelers flock to the theme parks, hotels, rtrants and clubs every June for the multiday “GayDays” event. Vis Orlando v LGBTQ travelers to pay rpects at the former se of the Pulse gay nightclub, where an terim memorial honors the 49 people who were killed a 2016 mass shootg.

”GayDays print Chris Manley said he expects a huge bash this year after skippg the last two bee of the panmic. “This year I’m hopg to see more and more ctom on that say ‘I say gay, ’” he said. ”The news as major LGBTQ-oriented events such as Miami Beach’s Pri and Orlando’s Pri Prom are set to take place later this events – such as the Out & Equal Workplace Summ and Gay Days, which affects many bs Orlando such as SeaWorld, Walt Disney World, Hilton Hotels & Rorts and more – may also be News has reached out for ment om the affected pani.

However, acrdg to a 2023 Gallup poll, 55 percent of Amerins were satisfied wh the acceptance of gay and lbian people, while 38 percent were dissatisfied. Equaly Florida also listed a seri of legislative steps the state had taken regardg the cln of LGBTQ+ ntent the tn said a law dubbed "Don't Say Gay"—barrg teachers om krgarten to third-gra stunts public schools om discsg sexual orientatn and genr inty the classroom—had ma Florida "synonymo wh the anti-LGBTQ+ movement to empower ernment censorship. " The NAACP, long an advote for Black Amerins, joed the League of Uned Lat Amerin Cizens (LULAC), a Lato civil rights anizatn, and Equaly Florida, a gay rights advocy group, issug travel advisori for the Sunshe State, where tourism is one of the state's largt job sectors.

LOS ANGEL COUNTY BANS OFFICIAL TRAVEL TO FLORIDA OVER ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ LAW

Recent efforts to lim discsn on LGBTQ topics schools, the removal of books wh gay characters om school librari, a recent ban on genr-affirmg re for mors, new rtrictns on abortn accs and a law allowg Floridians to rry ncealed guns whout a perm ntributed to Equaly Florida's warng. California Attorney General Rob Bonta barred state-fund travel to Missouri, Nebraska, and Wyomg on Friday, acrdance wh California Assembly Bill 1887, which requir the AG to rtrict state-fund travel to stat supportg or fancg discrimatn agast lbian, gay, bisexual, or transgenr Amerins. Equaly Florida's warng ced DeSantis' work to lim discsn on LGBTQ topics schools, ban books wh gay characters om school librari and the state's recent ban on genr-affirmg re for mors.

The NAACP, long an advote for Black Amerins, joed the League of Uned Lat Amerin Cizens (LULAC), a Lato civil rights anizatn, and Equaly Florida, a gay rights advocy group, issug travel advisori for the Sunshe State, where tourism is one of the state’s largt job sectors. Recent efforts to lim discsn on LGBTQ topics  schools, the removal of books wh gay characters om school librari, a recent ban on genr-affirmg re for mors, new rtrictns on abortn accs and a law allowg Floridians to rry ncealed guns whout a perm ntributed to Equaly Florida’s warng. Ron DeSantis speaks at the Herage Foundatn 50th Anniversary Celebratn learship summ, April 21, 2023, Oxon Hill, Brandon/AP, FILEThe NAACP's travel advisory follows siar on issued by the League of Uned Lat Amerin Cizens, a Lato civil rights group, and Equaly Florida, a gay rights advocy group.

Lawmakers 2016 banned non-sential travel to stat wh laws that discrimate agast lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr people. Ron DeSantis signs law to put Disney district unr state ntrolEqualy Florida's warngs e rponse to legislatn cludg a classroom law dubbed "Don't Say Gay" that rtricts teachgs about sexual orientatn and genr inty, bans on re for transgenr mors and the approval of a bill that lets people rry ncealed guns whout perms. Don't Say Gay Law.

LOS ANGEL COUNTY BANS OFFICIAL TRAVEL TO FLORIDA OVER NTROVERSIAL 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW

But Florida’s Parental Rights Edutn act — which crics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — has sudnly sparked a natnal war of 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. ” 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.

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 legal experts say that whether the bill prohibs the word “gay” self is a “distractn.