Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed into law HB 1557, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay Bill”, which is part of a series of “parental rights” bills proposed and passed by Florida Republican representatives and senators. The bill pertains to the mental-health and well-being of school-aged children attending public schools in Florida. Key parts of the bill are intended to protect parent’s rights such as in section 2 which states “A school district may not adopt procedures or student support forms that prohibit school district personnel from notifying a parent about his or her student's mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being” or in section 5 which states “At the beginning of the school year, each school district shall notify parents of each healthcare service offered at their student's school and the option to withhold consent or decline any specific service.” Additionally, the bill contains parts about appropriate instruction for kindergarten-aged to third grade students prohibiting discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity. Specifically these parts, about sexual oreintation discussion, has led to controversy over the intent and purpose of the bill. 

Many supporters of the bill are in favor of what they call “parental rights” in education. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was elected on a campaign promise to deliver rights to parents and he has delivered on this. Since taking office, DeSantis has signed bills like the “Parent’s Bill of Rights” which have sought to make parents more responsible for their children regarding public education. Regardless of opinion on the matter, DeSantis’s bills and ideas have been passing through the Florida legislature, most recently, HB 1557. Governor DeSantis commented on the bill, saying “I don’t want the schools to kind of be a playground for ideological disputes or to try to inject”, regarding the education of kindergarteners to third graders and what is appropriate for them to learn. For the most part, it appears Florida Republicans just want “to educate kids on the subjects —math, reading, science” as DeSantis put it. Simply said, those in favor of the bill want kids to learn free of influence on gender and sexual orientation and their parents to know how their children’s health is along with what their children learn. 

On the other side of the argument, Florida Democrats are in opposition to HB 1557, particularly focusing on the portions of the bill regarding education on sexual orientation. Democrat Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith, an openly gay politician, worries “It’s [HB 1557] going to have, really, a chilling effect on the ability of school districts to continue with LGBTQ-inclusive policies that create positive educational environments for our youth,” Smith, along with most Florida Democrats, comes from a more open-minded perspective in life and believes that in trying to prevent children from learning about the LGBTQ+ community/identity, issues will arise. In addition to politicians, prominent attraction company and film producer Disney has openly opposed the bill, with some of its workers even striking because of it. In a Facebook post, Disney stated they oppose “any legislation that infringes on basic human rights”, in this case, LGBTQ+ rights. 

With such a political firestorm over the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, much is still unknown with the outcome and the effects of the bill. It is expected there will be huge political fallout in Florida as the bill takes effect on July 1st. Once in effect, it will give the Department of Education power to do many things along the lines of parental rights, likely to provoke those opposed to the bill. While Governor DeSantis has signed the bill into law, there is likely to be a legal uproar as many labor unions and LGBTQ advocacy groups will likely attempt to get the bill up to the Supreme Court. Due to this, there is potential for there to be an impact nationwide from HB 1557.  

By: Aaron Heth

Photo: As seen on Time.com by Joe Raedle