On Tuesday, a Florida House Republican introduced a bill that would forbid teachers from discussing gender identity and sexual orientation until the eighth grade.
The proposal would increase the scope of a contentious 2022 law that forbids such training in the primary grades. The eight-page law (HB 1223) also forbids asking pupils about their chosen pronouns or disclosing to them their preferred pronouns if they do not correspond to their sex.
The legislation was introduced by Rep. Adam Anderson, a Republican from Palm Harbor, for discussion during the upcoming legislative session, which begins on March 7.
The 2022 law restricted instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in classes kindergarten through third and mandated that it be developmentally or age-appropriate in grades four through eight.
The age- or developmentally-appropriate test would still be used in grades 9 through 12 under Anderson’s proposal. The 2022 rule sparked heated discussion across the nation as proponents claimed it would protect students and detractors mockingly dubbed it “Don’t Speak Gay.”
The personal pronouns in instruction would also be addressed by Anderson’s measure. According to the bill, it is untrue to assign a pronoun to a person that does not match to that person’s sex, and it shall be the policy of all public schools that a person’s sex is an immutable biological attribute.
Equality Florida, a group that advocates for LGBTQ people, swiftly denounced the idea and claimed that Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “censorship agenda” was behind the 2022 law.
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Parental Rights in Education Act or ‘Don’t Say Gay Bill’
Former state Senate candidate Janelle Perez said that such plans will “kill” homosexual children in the midst of the filing of a bill to extend Florida’s K-3 Parental Rights in Education Act to PreK-8.
Rep. Adam Anderson, R-Palm Harbor, submitted a bill on Tuesday that would extend Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act to include other school levels and restrict the discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom.
The updated plan includes a pronoun policy for public institutions of higher learning serving grades K–12.
It states that a person cannot be forced to use another person’s chosen personal title or pronouns if those pronouns don’t match that person’s sex as a requirement for employment or participation in any program. This includes contractors and students in K–12 public schools.
Workers would not be permitted to inquire about the preferred pronouns or personal titles of students.
The Parental Rights in Education Act was called “Don’t Say Gay” by Democrats. The legislation is supported, according to a spokesman for House Speaker Paul Renner, a Republican from the Palm Coast.
The measure maintains the provisions of the Parental Rights in Education Act that forbid school districts from failing to inform parents about changes in relevant services or monitoring or regarding a student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being.
According to the bill, schools are not allowed to discourage or forbid parents from being informed of and involved in important choices that can have an impact on a student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being.
Former representative Carlos Guillermo Smith, a Democrat, claimed that the act causes a “down in the overall well-being of LGBTQ kids.”
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