Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay Bill’ Is Backed by ‘Pro’ Gay Corporations
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The Parental Rights in Education bill, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” is according to Republican Florida state Rep. Joe Harding :“about defending the most awesome responsibility a person can have: being a parent. That job can only be given to you by above.”
Harding’s bill, along with its companion bill would block teachers in Florida from talking about LGBTQ+ topics that are not “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.”
According to the bill, parents may take legal action against their child’s school district and be awarded damages if they believe any of its policies infringe on their “fundamental right to make decisions regarding the upbringing and control of their children.”
The bill has received pushback from Pete and Chasten Buttigieg, among others for making Florida a more hostile place for LGBTQ+ youth.
Should the bill become law, younger students with same-sex parents could be prohibited from discussing their family in class. It would make it difficult for teachers to discuss the Stonewall Riots or Supreme Court cases like Obergefell v. Hodges.
The bill would further stigmatize LGBTQ students, many of whom already face a hostile environment at school. According to the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, “33% of LGBTQ students ages 13 to 21 said they missed a day of school over the course of a month because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable, and more than 77% said they avoided school functions because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable.” The Trevor Project notes that “LGBTQ students who learned about LGBTQ issues or people in classes at school were 23% less likely to attempt suicide in the past year.”
A new fact has emerged as the bill gets closer to being passed: it’s being funded by corporations who claim to be pro-gay.
The chief sponsor of the bill in the Florida Senate, Dennis Baxley (R), has a history of derogatory statements about LGBTQ people. In 2015, Baxley voted against a bill that formalized the right of same-sex couples to adopt children, saying he “simply can’t affirm homosexuality.” In 2013, Baxley said a child with “two mommies” was in the same kind of “dysfunctional” environment as a child with “abusive father” or drug addict as a parent. In 2016, Baxley voted for legislation that would allow churches to refuse to wed same-sex couples — a right already afforded to religious groups under the Constitution — because he said there is “a war, a battle, an assault going on, on the traditional family.”
Yet Baxley and top supporters of his “Don’t Say Gay” bill received financial support from corporations that claim to be champions of LGBTQ rights. Popular Information reviewed Florida campaign finance filings since 2020 of the bill’s sponsors in the Florida House and Senate, the members of the Florida Senate who voted for the bill in committee, and DeSantis.
Comcast/NBC Universal, for example, donated $1,000 to Baxley on October 15, 2021, and a total of $28,000 to the top supporters of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill since 2020. The company donated to every sponsor and co-sponsor of the legislation and all six Florida Senators who voted the bill out of committee. But the company publicly promotes itself as fighting for LGBTQ rights.
On Comcast’s corporate website, Yvette Miley, Senior Vice President of MSNBC and NBC News, says “Some people may think the LGBTQ rights journey is done and the struggle is over, but it isn‘t. Our job is to continuously educate.”
Because in-person Pride parades were limited in 2021, Comcast created “a virtual ‘Pride World,’ where we will feature events, Pride floats, Pride flags, and even a Pronoun Guide for employees.”
UnitedHealth promotes its support for LGBTQ rights, donated $200,000 to DeSantis
For the third year in a row, UnitedHealth Group earned a perfect score in the 2022 Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index. On Twitter, the company celebrated the recognition, but insisted that “our work does not stop here.”
UnitedHealth promotes its support for LGBTQ rights, donated $200,000 to DeSantis
For the third year in a row, UnitedHealth Group earned a perfect score in the 2022 Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index. On Twitter, the company celebrated the recognition, but insisted that “our work does not stop here.”
AT&T says it “embraces, and stands with LGBTQ+ people,” donated $86,000 to the politicians behind the “Don’t Say Gay” bill
Last June, AT&T asserted on social media that the company “recognizes, embraces, and stands with LGTBQ+ people.” AT&T also partnered with the Trevor Project during last year’s Pride Month and promoted its contributions to the organization.
Walgreens says it stands for “allyship, community, and kindness,” donated $28,000 to the politicians behind the “Don’t Say Gay” bill
Walgreens also achieved a perfect score in the HRC 2022 Corporate Equality Index. According to the company, it has “a proud legacy of valuing diversity and fostering inclusion more than 100 years-strong, and we’re still living that commitment.”
Other major corporate donors to the Florida politicians supporting the “Don’t Say Gay” bill include Anheuser Busch ($75,000), Charter Communications ($102,000), Publix ($125,000), and the Florida Realtors ($113,000). None of these companies responded to Popular Information’s request for comment.
Beyond Florida
The attack on speech about sexuality and gender is not limited to Florida. According to a new report by PEN America, there are 15 bills in 9 states “silencing speech about LGBTQ+ identities.” In Kansas, HB 2662 would make it a Class B misdemeanor for a teacher to use any material in the classroom depicting “homosexuality.” In Tennessee, HB 800 would prohibit public K-12 schools from adopting any instructional materials that “promote, normalize, support, or address lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) issues or lifestyles.”
Many of these provisions are tucked into larger bills that limit how teachers can talk about race and history in classrooms.
