Classroom rule may be extended
Desantis set to expand Florida parental rights law to all grades
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron Desantis’ administration is moving to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades.
The proposal, which would not require legislative approval, is scheduled for a vote next month before the state Board of Education and has been put forward by the state Education Department, both of which are led by appointees of the governor.
The rule change would ban lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity from grades 4 to 12, unless required by existing state standards or as part of reproductive health instruction that students can choose not to take. The initial law that Desantis championed last spring bans those lessons in kindergarten through the third grade. The change was first reported by the Orlando Sentinel. Spokespeople for the governor’s office and the Education Department did not immediately return an emailed request for comment.
White House press secretary Karine Jeanpierre condemned the proposal saying “It’s wrong, it’s completely, utterly wrong.” She called it “part of a disturbing and dangerous trend that we’re seeing across the nation” of targeting LGBTQ people.
Last year’s Parental Rights in Education Act drew widespread backlash nationally, with critics saying it marginalizes LGBTQ people and their presence in society.
President Joe Biden called it “hateful.”
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.
Critics of the law say its language — “classroom instruction,” “age appropriate” and “developmentally appropriate” — is overly broad and subject to interpretation. Consequently, teachers might opt to avoid the subjects entirely for fear of being sued, they say.
Desantis had faced calls from at least one Republican presidential contender to go even further than the existing law, with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley last month saying the prohibition could be more stringent and extended into later grades.