A Florida bill dubbed “Don't Say Gay”
cleared a House committee on Thursday.
The Parental Rights in Education bill
will advance to the full House after the Florida House Education &
Employment Committee gave HB 1557 its blessing, the Los
Angeles Blade reported.
The bill, along with its companion
Senate bill (SB 1834), prohibits discussion about sexual orientation
and gender identity in a school setting. Other provisions in the bill
would require school administrators to notify parents if a student
identifies as LGBTQ at school, effectively outing students to their
parents.
Equality Florida, the state's largest
LGBTQ rights advocate, described the bill as part of Republican
Governor Ron DeSantis' effort to “erase discussion of LGBTQ people
from schools in Florida.”
“Governor DeSantis’ march toward
his own personal surveillance state continues,” the group's Brandon
J. Wolf said in a statement given to the Blade. “Today, the
Don’t Say Gay bill, a piece of legislation to erase discussion of
LGBTQ people from schools in Florida, passed its first committee and
became another component of an agenda designed to police us in our
classrooms, doctor’s offices, and workplaces. Make no mistake –
LGBTQ people are your neighbors, family members, and friends. We are
a normal, healthy part of society and we will not be erased.”
According to The Trevor Project, LGBTQ
youth are four times more likely to seriously consider suicide than
their peers. The group estimates that at least one LGBTQ youth
(13-24) attempts suicide every 45 seconds in the United States.
In a tweet, Chasten Buttigieg said that
the bill would “kill kids.”
“This will kill kids,
@RonDeSantisFL,” Buttigieg, the husband of Transportation Secretary
Pete Buttigieg, said. “You are purposefully making your state a
harder place for the LGBTQ kids to survive in. In a national survey
(@TrevorProject), 42% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting
suicide last year. Now they can't talk to their teachers?”
Republicans control both chambers of
the Florida legislature.