Florida’s largest school system blocks LGBTQ-inclusive student safety measure
An attorney for the school system told board members that he did not believe the proposed resolution conflicted with the Parental Rights in Education law. But several school board members still cited the new ordinance, which critics have dubbed the “don’t say gay” law, in justifying their decision to reverse their previous support for LGBTQ History Month.
In the 1970s, gay rights activists in Miami sparred with Anita Bryant, a religious conservative who used South Florida to launch her nationwide campaign against anti-discrimination ordinances. Then in the 1980s during the AIDS epidemic, gay men flocked to Miami Beach, and helped develop it into a global tourism and entertainment destination.
“Schools are there for education and not there for indoctrination,” said Verdugo, repeating debunked theories that children choose their sexual orientation based on their exposure to LGBTQ issues. “We celebrate the content of people’s character, not their sexual preference and not their sexual identity.”