Florida extends 'Don't Say Gay' ban on sexuality, gender identity teachings to all grades

The Florida Board of Education expanded the state’s prohibition on teaching students about sexual orientation or gender identity to all K-12 public schools. The move was pushed by the southern US state’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis.

The proposed restriction, which does not require legislative approval, is part of a broader push towards cultural issues that DeSantis has championed for what is widely expected to be a 2024 presidential campaign.

The new rule stipulates that teachers "shall not intentionally provide classroom instruction to students in grades 4 through 12 on sexual orientation or gender identity unless such instruction is ... expressly required by state academic standards."

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It also allows for an exemption if the lesson is "part of a reproductive health course or health lesson for which a student's parent has the option to have his or her student not attend."

Teachers who violate the policy could have their teaching licenses and credentials suspended or revoked, according to the text.

This new law was supported by DeSantis last year which barred instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten through third grade. He argued that parents, instead of teachers should decide when to discuss those subjects with their children.

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Equality Florida, an LGBTQ rights group, expressed outrage at the move and said that it marginalises LGBTQ students.

"Shame on the DeSantis Administration for putting a target on the backs of LGBTQ Floridians," the group said in a statement.

It accused Republican officials of having a "lust for government censorship."

State education officials, on the other hand, said that the rule is meant to ensure that educators stick to Florida’s teaching standards.

“The curriculum and the standards taught in an academic classroom have nothing to do with the school’s compassion and being able to provide services to individual students,” Education Commissioner Manny Diaz said at the meeting in Tallahassee. “They’re not being shunned; none of this is being addressed here.”

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DeSantis'backing of the rule has also sparked a fight between him and Disney after the entertainment company publicly opposed it. The governor has since taken steps to revoke Disney’s special authority over the land where Walt Disney World is located.

The changes backed Wednesday to bolster a rule the board initially established in October carrying out the controversial bill from last year.

DeSantis, who won the re-election in 2022 in a landslide victory, has made battling politicians, teachers and businesses he accuses of wanting to impose a progressive ‘woke’ ideology on others a central concern of his second term.

(With inputs from agencies)

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