A bill to prohibit the instruction or discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools passed in the House after an hour-long debate. Critics refer to the legislation as the “Don’t Say, Gay Bill.”
“This is not against anyone’s lifestyle, at all. It’s about protecting the children in the classroom from an adult sharing their lifestyle preference, that’s all this is,” said bill author Houghton Representative Dodie Horton.
A former teacher and New Orleans Representative Candace Newell spoke in opposition to the bill. She said merely prohibiting the discussion tells trans and gay students they don’t matter.
“We are telling them we do not care how you feel, you do not matter because you’re different. Just because a person is different does not mean that we should discriminate against them,” said Newell.
Chalmette Representative Ray Garofalo supported the bill and said teachers should only be teaching the basics, reading, writing, and arithmetic.
“What we’ve seen over the last few years is there are activist teachers in our classrooms trying to indoctrinate our students into a political way of thinking. It’s not right and it’s not fair to the students,” said Garofalo.
The bill passed in the House 67 to 28 and advances to the upper chamber.
Comments