Before even passing, the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill is already hurting Florida’s children
Oh, Florida legislators, the harm you do from your ivory tower up there in Tallahassee.
Elaine Acosta González, a concerned parent who reached out to me reading my column about the wrong-headed “Don’t Say Gay” bill moving through the Legislature, says her 15-year-old daughter has been talking about the topic at home.
The bill would silence gay children, their teachers and education advocates by banning the discussion of sexuality and gender identification in Florida’s public schools.
“She has been talking about it at home because they’ve been talking about it at school,” González told me. “I passed your article to her to read. It would be important to give young people a voice on this matter.”
Indeed, youth should have a prominent voice in the matter — and so should the science- and data oriented experts who know the place of sexuality in education: mental-health professionals who work and study LGBTQ youth.
Like parents, these experts also are concerned about the damage lawmakers who introduced the bill already are doing to set back the lives of gay and trans children in Florida.
Florida has come a long way from its dark, intolerant past toward the gay community, yet now it’s speeding backwards under the leadership of its ambitious Gov. Ron DeSantis — and a Legislature that not only is dominated by the GOP, but also by its extreme right wing.
The bill smacks of the fundamentalist white Christian ideology to which its sponsor, Rep. Joe Harding, apparently subscribes, one that has driven America‘s cultural wars for decades.
But this is 2022 — aren’t we supposed to be more enlightened, even in what’s left of rural Florida?
Even before passing, House Bill 1557 already is hurting Florida’s children. The harm it would cause can’t be underestimated, experts say.
Its proponents defend the legislation saying that it specifically targets discussion of sexuality and gender identity in elementary schools.
But early education is where children begin to learn, explore and develop socially and emotionally, experts say, and where they begin to have “an innate sense of their gender identity,” a top expert in the field told me.
“Children unequivocally spend the majority of their days in school. We know healthy kids often grow to be healthy adults. Therefore, open and safe discussions regarding gender identity and sexual orientation at school will help protect numerous children from negative developmental, psychological and physical outcomes,” said Natasha L. Poulopoulos, a Miami-based pediatric psychologist.
A recent Trevor Project survey found that 42% of youth seriously considered suicide in the past year, Poulopoulos said.
“This rises to 50% for trans and gender-diverse youth. Transgender and gender-diverse youth are also two to three times more likely to experience discrimination and a lack of safety at school,” she said.
LGBTQ+ youth, who learn about gender-identity issues at school, are 23% less likely to attempt suicide, she added.
“A bill eradicating classroom discussions regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, and encouraging parents to sue schools or teachers that speak up about these topics, will have deleterious effects on children and families,” Poulopoulos said. “Many LGBTQ+ children live in non-affirming environments, and this bill will perpetuate the idea that gender identity and/ or sexual orientation are something to be ashamed of or hidden. This will further marginalize
LGBTQ+ children, which will have long-term psychological impacts into adolescence and even adulthood.”
Children, she added, begin to develop their gender identity between the ages of 3 and 5, while “gender consistency, or recognition that gender remains the same across situations, occurs between ages 4 and 7.”
Teachers also are alarmed with the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
“Our organization’s goal and mission is to keep all of our students safe, and with the new bill, we feel it’s going to be terrible for our kids,” said teacher Elizabeth Morales, vice chair of the board of directors of Safe Schools South Florida, which seeks to create an inclusive environment for all students, not just for some, as legislators are poised to do.
NOT MENTAL-HEALTH EXPERTS
Legislators also cast their ill-conceived bill as a parental-rights issue.
But what about the rights of parents who don’t think their children should be discriminated against? Or, what about the rights of enlightened parents who know homophobia isn’t a Christian value at all?
Acosta González’s daughter is lucky because she has an exceptional, educated mother open to discussing her daughter’s sexuality and knowledgeable enough to navigate complexities.
“For the moment, she doesn’t have a defined sexual orientation, but she’s very sensitive to this [gay rights] issue and others about discrimination,” she says.
She describes her daughter as “a bit shy,” but wanting to participate in the decision-making about her education.
“She often claims that students are not asked their opinion,” Elaine says.
And there’s the answer, lawmakers.
Before you legislate “Don’t Say Gay,” ask Florida’s gay and straight students — and consult the professionals, warriors on the front lines of mental health.
It’s as simple as this: You might have the political power. But, no, you don’t know better.