{"id":101818,"date":"2022-02-20T08:14:08","date_gmt":"2022-02-20T13:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/PERSIAN-HERITAGE.COM\/?p=101818"},"modified":"2022-02-20T08:14:08","modified_gmt":"2022-02-20T13:14:08","slug":"battles-erupt-over-banning-lgbtq-topics-from-us-classrooms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/PERSIAN-HERITAGE.COM\/en\/2022\/02\/20\/battles-erupt-over-banning-lgbtq-topics-from-us-classrooms\/","title":{"rendered":"Battles Erupt Over Banning LGBTQ Topics From US Classrooms"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"VOA \u2014 Does a teacher\u2019s ability to mention sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom pose a threat to primary school students or further a well-rounded, inclusive educational experience? Americans are confronting the question as initiatives advance in several states that would muzzle public school teachers on LGBTQ-related topics.<\/p>\n

In Florida, a state legislative panel recently approved the Parental Rights Education Bill, which has the backing of Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. A portion of the bill that would ban discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in Florida\u2019s public primary schools has been denounced by LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and\/or queer) advocacy groups.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bill is cynical \u2013 political in nature, designed to help right-wing politicians rally their base before the next election,\u201d said Brandon Wolf, spokesperson for Equality Florida, one of the groups fighting what some have dubbed the \u201cDon\u2019t Say Gay\u201d bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut these political games have real-world consequences for young people, too,\u201d he added. \u201cPolicies like this cause social isolation among LGBTQ students and can lead to bullying and violence. LGBTQ children are four times more likely than their peers to attempt suicide before graduating high school.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Florida bill would have to clear several more legislative votes before DeSantis could sign it into law. Supporters say the initiative is misunderstood by some and distorted by others.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many fake claims being made,\u201d said Jay Richards, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based conservative think tank. \u201cYou have people saying the bill will outlaw conversations about homosexuality in school. That\u2019s not true. It\u2019s a prohibition on teachers bringing up highly sexualized \u2013 borderline pornographic \u2013 topics to young kids, and that prohibition is something I would hope we could all be behind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legislative language<\/strong><\/p>\n

A summary of the bill posted on the\u00a0Florida House of Representatives\u2019 website<\/a>\u00a0states it \u201cprohibits classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in certain grade levels\u201d with no indication that the ban is limited to highly sexualized topics.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0version of the bill\u00a0<\/a>before Florida\u2019s Senate bars encouraging \u201cclassroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in primary grade levels or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.\u201d The bill does not set forth what is or isn\u2019t age-appropriate, but it would allow parents to sue schools if they believe teachers are violating the ban.<\/p>\n

Primary school in the United States is broken into elementary (kindergarten through grades 4-7) and middle school (grades 4-7 though 8-9). It is unclear whether the Florida legislation would apply to all primary grade levels or only the earliest ones attended by the youngest children. A revised version of the bill that will go before the House more specifically addresses instruction in kindergarten through third grade.<\/p>\n

But as written, House and Senate versions of the bill could conceivably prevent public school students from learning about LGBTQ topics in the classroom until high school, which most students enter around age 15.<\/p>\n

LGBTQ activist Zack Ford at Washington\u2019s Alliance for Justice said there is no reason to shield even the youngest students from the reality that sexual minorities exist.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are kindergartners who understand they are queer,\u201d he said. \u201cThis bill could have the effect of censoring and isolating them, and that makes school less safe for them. There is no age too young to understand queer (LGBTQ) identities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not only in Florida<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN), the U.S. states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas already have laws on the books banning or restricting discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools.<\/p>\n

While recent years have seen the states of Alabama, Arizona, South Carolina and Utah repeal such statutes, Florida is among at least eight states moving in the opposite direction. Separately, some school districts in the U.S. have seen parent-led campaigns to rid school libraries of LGBTQ-themed books.<\/p>\n

Wolf of Equality Florida says it\u2019s not a coincidence that legislative efforts are popping up around the country at the same time.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of these anti-LGBTQ bills moving across the U.S. are birthed from the same bigoted place,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re concocted by anti-LGBTQ organizations outside of our states and then shipped to right-wing legislators in Florida and elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parental rights<\/strong><\/p>\n

For Florida\u2019s governor, it\u2019s an issue of students being exposed to certain topics without their parents\u2019 consent.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo get into situations where you’re hiding things from the parent, you\u2019re injecting these concepts about choosing your gender \u2013 that is just inappropriate for our schools,\u201d DeSantis said earlier this month. \u201cThe larger issue with all of this is parents must have a seat at the table when it comes to what\u2019s going on in their schools.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat school doesn\u2019t want parents involved?\u201d Wolf countered. \u201cBut education is also a community effort. Teachers and administrators need to be able to share and lead open dialogue with their students to be most effective for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Joe Biden weighed in on Twitter, calling the Florida legislation a \u201chateful bill\u201d and saying he wants LGTBQ youth to \u201cknow that you are loved and accepted just as you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

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