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The office of Florida Gov. DeSantis (R) has confirmed that the anti-LGBTQ+ governor is supportive of extending the stipulations of the state\u2019s Don\u2019t Say Gay law \u2013 known formally as the Parental Rights in Education Act.<\/p>\n

Right now, the law bans discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity up to third grade, and a staffer for the state\u2019s Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R) told The Daily Mail <\/em><\/a>that lawmakers are thinking about introducing legislation to expand the law up to sixth grade.<\/p>\n

In a press conference in December, Passidomo expanded on this, saying that she doesn\u2019t think she\u2019d \u201cbe supportive of high school because kids in high school are, hopefully, a little more mature, or at least they should be, but you know, the middle school, maybe go up to 6th grade or something like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeSantis Press Secretary Bryan Griffin then said <\/em>that \u201cThe governor would certainly consider the merits of such a bill in final form if it comes to his desk as a product of the forthcoming legislation session.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Griffin said DeSantis often expresses his belief that \u201cthe purpose of our education system is to educate kids, not indoctrinate kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to banning classroom instruction on LGBTQ+ issues up to third grade, the law as it currently stands also requires in vague terms that discussions on the topic in older grades be \u201cdevelopmentally appropriate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead of defining those terms, the bill allows parents to sue schools if they believe the law was violated.<\/p>\n
DeSantis\u2019s support for increasing the age range for the Don\u2019t Say Gay law is not a surprise, as he has made it clear he is virulently opposed to protecting LGBTQ+ students.<\/p>\n
In December, it was revealed that DeSantis helped<\/a> members of the anti-LGBTQ+ group Moms for Liberty get elected to local school boards in his state.<\/p>\n
An educational anti-censorship expert says this development is part of DeSantis\u2019 plan to shift his state\u2019s schools toward a conservative ideology. With Moms for Liberty in control, curricula will exclude LGBTQ+-inclusive and anti-racist education.<\/p>\n
And more recently, DeSantis appointed<\/a> the far-right anti-LGBTQ+ activist Christopher Rufo to the board of trustees of the New College of Florida \u2013 a school with a reputation for being progressive and queer-friendly.<\/p>\n
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Rufo told the New York Times <\/em>the board is planning a \u201ctop-down restructuring\u201d of the school that will involve designing \u201ca new core curriculum from scratch.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we can take this high-risk, high-reward gambit and turn it into a victory,\u201d he said, \u201cwe\u2019re going to see conservative state legislators starting to reconquer public institutions all over the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n
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