Republican lawmakers in Florida passed a bill on Friday that would further restrict discussions about gender identity and sexual orientation throughout middle school, in what critics are calling a “horrible expanded” version of the state’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law.
House Bill 1609 would ban classroom discussions on LGBTQ issues until 9th grade, and also limit discussions throughout high school classrooms if the state deemed such discussions “inappropriate.”
The bill would dictate what can be learned in the state’s public and charter schools and only allow “certain teaching and discussions that align with the governor’s personal viewpoint,” the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida said in a statement.
“This bill has nothing to do with parents’ rights,” the group added, slamming it as “dangerously vague and overly broad” legislation that would “have a chilling effect on educators and students and silence support for LGBTQ+ youth.”
Critics say the bill is an extension of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill — commonly known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — which prohibits discussions about gender identity and sexual orientation in primary school classrooms and was signed into law by Gov. Ron Desantis last year.
HB 1609 would forbid teachers from asking students for their preferred pronouns or referring to them by pronouns that differ from the ones that match their sex assigned at birth — even when that goes against parents’ wishes. It would also prohibit teaching or reading about LGBTQ historical figures, leaders, artists and politicians until high school, and lead to more banned books in the state.
Dubbed the “Don’t Say LGBTQ Expansion bill” or the “Don’t Say LGBT 2.0,” HB 1609 passed the Florida House on a 77-35 vote, with two Republicans voting with the minority.
The legislation is one of many attempts by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration to target what he calls the “indoctrination” of youth.
Hundreds of students from across the state — some carrying LGBTQ and transgender Pride flags, others carrying pro-equality signs — gathered outside the Capitol on Friday to demonstrate.
Videos of crowds chanting “Hey hey. Ho ho. Ron DeSantis has got to go!” were widely shared on social media channels.
“‘Don’t Say LGBT 2.0′ just passed the FL House expanding the gag order on teachers thru 8th grade,” former state Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith, Florida’s first LGBTQ Latino lawmaker, tweeted Friday afternoon.
“It doubles down on book-banning requiring IMMEDIATE REMOVAL of school books targeted for objection by any random person and gives absolute political control over sex ed to the state,” he added.
A similar bill restricting sex education filed by Republican Sen. Clay Yarborough is currently moving through the Senate. It has one additional committee hearing before it can be heard on the floor, according to Florida Politics.