Gender-teaching ban made law in Florida
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law on Monday that forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade.
The legislation has pushed Florida and DeSantis, an ascending Republican and potential 2024 presidential candidate, to the forefront of the country’s culture wars.
DeSantis and other Republicans have repeatedly said the measure is reasonable and that parents, not teachers, should be broaching subjects of sexual orientation and gender identity with their children.
“We will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not an indoctrination,” DeSantis said to applause before he signed the measure during a ceremony at Classical Preparatory School in Spring Hill.
At the ceremony, several young children accompanied DeSantis and other politicians near the podium, with some holding signs bearing the governor’s “Protect Children/Support Parents” slogan.
The law states: “Classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”
Parents would be able to sue districts over violations.
As the bill moved through the legislature, celebrities mobilized against it on social media. Florida students staged walkouts and packed into committee rooms and statehouse halls to protest the measure.
The Walt Disney Company suspended its political donations in the state.
LGBTQ advocates who work for Disney criticized CEO Bob Chapek for what they said was his slow response speaking out against the bill. Some walked off the job in protest.
After DeSantis signed the measure, Disney released a statement saying, “Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts.”
Throughout debate in the GOP-controlled statehouse, Democrats have said the law’s language could be interpreted so broadly that discussion in any grade could trigger lawsuits and create a classroom atmosphere where teachers would avoid the subjects entirely.
The White House, which has sparred with the DeSantis administration over a range of policies, has issued statements against the law.
“My Administration will continue to fight for dignity and opportunity for every student and family — in Florida and around the country,” Biden tweeted Monday.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona recently held a call with LGBTQ students in Florida and said in a statement issued Monday that his agency “will be monitoring this law upon implementation to evaluate whether it violates federal civil rights law.”