Explained: What is the ‘Don’t say gay’ bill being proposed in Florida?

I want every member of the LGBTQI+ community — especially the kids who will be impacted by this hateful bill — to know that you are loved and accepted just as you are. I have your back, and my Administration will continue to fight for the protections and safety you deserve. https://t.co/OcAIMeVpHL

— President Biden (@POTUS) February 8, 2022

A section of lawmakers, activists and parents fear that the proposed law, referred to by critics as the “Don’t say gay” legislation, would further marginalise the LGBTQI+ community. Its proponents, however, say it will help protect parental rights.

What is the ‘Don’t say gay’ legislation?

The Florida House Bill 1557 was introduced in the state House of Representatives last month, while an identical version, called the Senate Bill 1834, advanced in the state Senate on Tuesday. Both bills, titled ‘Parental Rights in Education’, ban classroom discussions about sexuality and gender identity in “primary grade levels”. It does not specify the age bracket for which these rules will apply.

The bills seek to ensure greater rights for parents to decide what their children are exposed to in school. An earlier bill passed by Republicans, known as the ‘Parents’ Bill of Rights’, was meant to give parents the right to “direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health”. However, it was found that most schools were not completely transparent with parents, lawmakers have argued.

Republican lawmaker Joe Harding, who introduced the bill in the state House of Representatives, hopes it will “reinforce the fundamental right of parents to make decisions regarding upbringing and control of their children,” according to the bill’s text.

The bill, if passed, will also enable students to take legal action against a school or school district if they find that conversations about LGBTQI+ issues are taking place in the classroom.

Voicing support for the bill, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said that it was “entirely inappropriate” for teachers to be having conversations with students about gender identity. “Schools need to be teaching kids to read, to write,” he said. “They need to teach them science, history. We need more civics and understanding of the US Constitution, what makes our country unique, all those basic stuff.”

Why is the bill being criticised?

Several LGBTQI+ advocates have drawn parallels between the bill and the ‘no promo homo’ laws of the 1990s that similarly banned teachers from discussing sexuality in schools.

Activist Chasten Buttigieg, who is married to US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, denounced the Bill, stating that it will make Florida “a harder place for LGBTQ kids to survive in”.

“Every parent hopes that our leaders will ensure their children’s safety, protection, and freedom,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a recent press conference. “Today, conservative politicians in Florida rejected those basic values by advancing legislation that is designed to target and attack the kids who need support the most.”

Is this the first time such legislation has been introduced in the US?

No. Over the decades, many such bills have been introduced, with some even becoming laws. Several such laws were introduced in the 1970s and 80s, at the height of anti-gay rights activism in the US. Since then, several of these laws have been repealed.

Just last year, at least 28 states have seen conservative lawmakers introduce bills that would limit conversations about race and sexuality, of which 10 were signed into law. In Arkansas, Tennessee and Montana, bills have been passed that permit parents to withdraw their children from lessons about queer issues.

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