Florida Governor Ron Desantis has officially passed House Bill 1557 (Parental Rights in Education) which will be effective July 1st of this year.
The bill itself has been re-titled by many who oppose it. Outraged citizens in Florida have protested what they now call the “Don’t Say Gay” law, showing their support for the LGBTQ+ community.
The bill states that it, “prohibits classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in certain grade levels."
The stated intention is to allow the interests of parents to be used allow parents to decide the curriculum for their children. People who oppose it view it as an attack on progress made to integrate the interests of the LGBTQ+ community into our country as a whole.
The Bill restricts certain terms and phrases relating to the topic of sexual identity to be used by teachers in the classroom for students between Kindergarten and 3rd grade, but the some outside studies suggests it can go higher than 3rd grade.
The makers of the bill and their supporters believe the topic of sexual identity is a discussion to be had between parents and children at home, and not at school.
Corporations like Disney vow to fight the bill, and have come as far as saying the bill “should never have passed and should never have been signed into law." The law also opens the possibility for parents to contest certain books offered in school libraries through the school board.
Protestors and some corporations hope to have it repealed sooner than later.
