Florida education board extends ban on gender identity lessons to all grades

 Florida education officials voted on Wednesday to ban classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in all public school grades, expanding on a law signed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis that barred such lessons for younger students and was derided by critics as the "Don't Say Gay" bill.

The new rule is part of a broader rightward push on cultural issues championed by DeSantis, who is widely expected to run for president in 2024.

The board, whose members are appointed by the governor, unanimously approved prohibiting lessons on gender identity or sexual orientation in grades four through 12, unless the instruction is required by state standards or is part of a health class that parents can opt their children out of.

Last year, DeSantis signed legislation that outlawed instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten through third grade, arguing that parents, rather than teachers, should decide when to discuss those subjects with their children.

Critics, including Democratic President Joe Biden, said the law would marginalize already vulnerable LGBTQ students. The statute sparked an ongoing battle between DeSantis and the Walt Disney Co, after the entertainment corporation publicly opposed the law.

Dozens of speakers gave impassioned remarks, mostly in opposition to the measure, during nearly an hour of public comment ahead of Wednesday's vote.

Many opponents said the rule's language was so vague that teachers would likely avoid the subjects altogether rather than risk their careers.

Some speakers asked whether teachers might skip works of fiction that feature gay characters, for instance, while others wondered whether LGBTQ students, or students with LGBTQ families, would feel unable to discuss their personal lives in class.

"This rule is by design a tool for curating fear, anxiety and the erasure of our LGBTQ community," said Joe Saunders, the senior political director for LGBTQ advocacy group Equality Florida.

https://news.yahoo.com/florida-education-board-vote-extending-100759537.html