‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bills Now in Play in Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Tennessee
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Versions, some worse, have now been put forth in Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.
On March 8, Georgia legislators proposed a bill that would prohibit discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation at private schools that receive state funding. Republican state senators introduced it on the same day the Florida Senate passed similar legislation, dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by critics, that prohibits educators from discussing LGBTQ issues.
In what could spark a Florida-style “Don’t Say Gay” debate, a north Louisiana lawmaker has filed a bill that would ban discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity for students from kindergarten through eighth grade.
The measure, House Bill 837, was submitted by state Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Haughton.
“I talked to some educators,” Horton said Friday. “They are not equipped, nor do they want to deal with these types of issues that belong in the home.”
Horton said that while she has not heard of any problems in her district with classroom discussions involving sexual orientation, she has heard from parents in nearby Caddo Parish and “several pastors” encouraged her to file the bill.
Florida’s Don’t Say Gay bill (passed by both houses of the legislature) is bad. But Tennessee is considering a bill that’s more far-reaching and restrictive.
Florida’s law is aimed at primary students. The restrictive heart of the bill is in this language:
Classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.
Proponents have argued that they are just trying to keep teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation out of the youngest classrooms.
But Tennessee’s bill covers the whole K-12 spectrum, and with much more explicitly restrictive language. The heart of HB 800 declares that public and charter schools
shall not locally adopt or use in the public schools of this state, textbooks and instructional materials or supplemental instructional materials that promote, normalize, support, or address lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, or transgender (LGBT) issues or lifestyles.
The words “normalize” and “address” are particularly chilling; they add up to a law against even mentioning LGBTQ persons or issues. A teacher assigning a biographical project for students, knowing that any students have two moms or dads, would be breaking this law. School districts would have to scour their reading materials to remove every item that mentions LGBTQ persons as if they are ordinary. Classics like The Sun Also Rises include gay characters; must they all be thrown out? And judging many of the playful children’s books available would be challenging; in Ryan T. Higgins’ Bruce series, a male bear becomes the mother of four geese. Would that be considered normalizing unconventional gender (and species) roles, and therefor illegal?
WHEREAS, the promotion of LGBT issues and lifestyles in public schools offends a significant portion of students, parents, and Tennessee residents with Christian values; and
WHEREAS, the promotion of LGBT issues and lifestyles should be subject to the same restrictions and limitations placed on the teaching of religion in public schools;
How this restriction in any way resembles “restrictions and limitations” on the teaching of religion is not clear.
Florida’s Don’t Say Gay bill will almost certainly end up in court, where its fate remains to be seen. This bill, with its clear subtext of “some Christians would like LGBTQ people to just disappear,” seems like a strong candidate for a court challenge as well. But the fact that it is even being considered says a great deal about the atmosphere in Tennessee.
The bill sparking protests in Florida but some are saying Oklahoma already has a version of the Florida initiative. it is HB 1775 and it passed in 2021 and became law.
“HB 1775 is an overly vague bill that prevents conversations on race gender and sexual orientation within public schools.” said Cindy Nguyen, Policy Director for the ACLU of Oklahoma.
The ACLU of Oklahoma has filed a lawsuit against the state of Oklahoma over what most people know as the “Critical Race Theory” bill but they say it limits other topics as well from being discussed in classrooms.
“We have already seen university professors remove content from their curricula that addresses sexual orientation as well as gender identity.” Said Nguyen
“They are similar and somewhat related but, no, they are not the same bill as what Florida has just passed.” Said Sen. Nathan Dahm.
The Republican from Broken Arrow says that HB 1775 only bans the requirement of students to take sexual orientation and gender identity courses in college. But would he be in favor of a Florida style “Don’t Say Gay” bill?
“With some of these ideas that are being pushed on young students even on our elementary schools. Yes, I think it is something that is necessary.” Said Dahm.
Well this isn’t happening in our schools in the first place, so why are we trying to write a piece of legislation that is not happening?” said Rep. Jacob Rosecrants.
Representative Rosencrants is a former teacher from Norman. ”As a parent of a trans-boy, I can tell you right now that any of this “eraser” or using this fear mongering, is extremely dangerous.”
“If it’s something the parents want to have the conversation with their children about, that’s one thing. But no, government employees should not be having this conversation with these young students.” Said Dahm.
The deadline to introduce completely new legislation has passed but Dahm says they could find an education-based bill, that Florida style language could be added to, and then pass this session.
