--- title: Florida Passed The Don’t Say Gay Bill. Here's What It Means description: Critics argue the bill is a discriminatory attempt by GOP lawmakers to stir support amid increasing politicization of LGBTQ rights. canonical: https://time.com/6155905/florida-dont-say-gay-passed/ author: Madeleine Carlisle article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2022-03-08T18:06:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:03:44.067Z article:section: Politics og:title: Florida Just Passed the "Don't Say Gay" Bill og:description: LGBTQ advocates say that's bad news for kids and families og:url: https://time.com/6155905/florida-dont-say-gay-passed/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc92a011ff9fc038/698a2fc2db2987334a26796a/florida-bill-dont-say-gay-02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Florida Same Sex Silencing og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Florida Just Passed the "Don't Say Gay" Bill twitter:description: LGBTQ advocates say that's bad news for kids and families twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc92a011ff9fc038/698a2fc2db2987334a26796a/florida-bill-dont-say-gay-02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Florida Just Passed the "Don't Say Gay" Bill. Here’s What It Means for Kids > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: The History You Didn't Learn: The (Gay) Harlem Renaissance [Watch (HLS stream): The History You Didn't Learn: The (Gay) Harlem Renaissance](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/AU0yqsEi.m3u8) (4:59)  _Published 2021-10-08. Most people remember learning even a little bit about the Harlem Renaissance in school. Langston Hughes, blues, jazz-- an explosion of artistic talent. But what we don’t learn about is that Harlem was also a thriving gay community._  by [Madeleine Carlisle](https://time.com/author/madeleine-carlisle/)  ## Madeleine Carlisle Mar 8, 2022 6:06 PM UTC  Demonstrators protesting the so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill gather on the steps of the Florida Historic Capitol Museum in front of the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. on March 7, 2022. Demonstrators protesting the so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill gather on the steps of the Florida Historic Capitol Museum in front of the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. on March 7, 2022. Wilfredo Lee—AP  by [Madeleine Carlisle](https://time.com/author/madeleine-carlisle/)  ## Madeleine Carlisle Mar 8, 2022 6:06 PM UTC The Florida Senate passed the controversial so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill on Tuesday, sending the Republican-backed legislation banning LGBTQ instruction in primary schools to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk. The bill passed the Republican-controlled Senate 22-17, and passed the Republican-controlled state House two weeks earlier 69-47\. DeSantis has signaled his support for the bill and is expected to sign it. The proposed law, often referred to by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, bans public school districts from teaching about sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through the third grade, or “in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students”—language that critics say could extend the ban to higher grade levels. State Rep. Joe Harding, a Republican who introduced the bill, told TIME in February that the bill’s intention is to keep parents “in the know and involved on what’s going on” with their child’s education, but critics argue the bill is discriminatory, and an attempt by Republican lawmakers to stir political support amid a broader climate of increasing politicization of LGBTQ rights and heightened scrutiny of what children are taught in schools. Advocates warn its passage could be harmful for students’ mental health. “The Florida state legislature is playing a dangerous political game with the health and safety of LGBTQ+ kids,” said Cathryn M. Oakley, the state legislative director and senior counsel at the national LGBTQ advocacy group Human Rights Campaign, in a statement. “The existence of LGBTQ+ people across Florida is not up for debate. We are proud parents, students, and teachers, and LGBTQ+ people deserve to exist boldly, just like everyone else.” **Read more:**[ _Kid of the Year Finalist Kai Shappley, 11, Takes on Lawmakers in Her Fight for Trans Rights_](https://time.com/6128490/kid-of-the-year-kai-shappley-trans-activist/) ## **What impact could the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill have?** Advocates say that because Florida’s K-3 curriculum does not currently include discussions of sexual orientation or gender identity, the law would not mandate an update to the state’s curriculum. But LGBTQ advocates warn that the law would make classrooms unsafe spaces for children who are LGBTQ or whose family members are LGBTQ. Such children often already face increased rates of stigma and isolation. The legislation could also impact how teachers provide instruction on a day-to-day basis. At a Senate hearing on Feb. 8, Republican Sen. Travis Hutson gave the example of a math problem that includes the details that “Sally has two moms or Johnny has two dads.” ​​Republican State Sen. Dennis Baxley, who sponsors the bill in the Senate, said that is “exactly” what the bill aims to prevent. **Read more:**[ _Anti-Trans Violence and Rhetoric Reached Record Highs Across America in 2021_](https://time.com/6131444/2021-anti-trans-violence/) The bill also creates a new avenue of litigation, as it potentially allows parents to sue the school district if they believe their children were provided inappropriate instruction about “sexual orientation or gender identity.” Advocates say that broad wording of the law could open the door for lawsuits about instruction provided in grade levels higher than the third grade. “Let us be clear: should the vague language of this bill be interpreted in any way that causes harm to a single child, teacher, or family, we will lead legal action against the State of Florida to challenge this bigoted legislation,” [tweeted](https://twitter.com/equalityfl/status/1501244164171878406?s=20&t=TK9meRACVhRuaJClWK8-Pg) the LGBTQ advoacy group Equality Florida on Tuesday. Imagine elementary school students are asked to draw pictures of their families and present them to the class, says Kara Gross, the legislative director and senior policy counsel of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which opposes the bill. What happens if a child being raised by a same-sex couples draws a picture of their two dads? Their teacher may face a decision between allowing the child to participate, Gross told TIME in February, and opening themselves and their school up to lawsuits, or excluding them from the exercise. Gross argues that the bill could also have a chilling effect on teachers’ freedom of speech and First Amendment rights. **R** **ead more:** [_Pediatricians Who Serve Trans Youth Face Increasing Harassment. Lifesaving Care Could Be on the Line_](https://time.com/6146269/doctors-trans-youth-gender-affirming-care-harassment/) On March 4, DeSantis signaled his support of the bill,[ telling reporters](https://miami.cbslocal.com/2022/03/04/desantis-defends-dont-say-gay-bill-warns-of-transgender-issues-injected-into-classroom-instruction/): “How many parents want their kids to have transgenderism or something injected into classroom instruction?” That same day, Christina Pushaw, a DeSantis spokesperson, tweeted that opponents of the bill are likely “groomers.” Equality Florida decried the comments, [tweeting](https://twitter.com/equalityfl/status/1500522197760327683?s=20&t=lBUyCBXbWO09zPb1-8ztLg) that Pushaw had said “the quiet part out loud: that this bill is grounded in a belief that LGBTQ people, simply by existing, are a threat to children and must be erased.” The group has also repeatedly [criticized](https://twitter.com/equalityfl/status/1490817957085126656) DeSantis’ seeming endorsement of the bill, tweeting Feb. 7 that he “is using anti-LGBTQ legislation as a springboard to serve \[his\] national political ambitions.” During the Tuesday hearing, Baxley said his aim when introducing the bill was to help parents raise children in a world where “so many different images are flashing before them, and so many challenges are before them about how to get their education.” Democratic state senators pushed back, including Sen. Shevrin Jones, Florida’s first openly gay Florida state senator, who told the legislative body: “To those who think you can legislate gay people away, I’m sorry. You cannot. I think you should legislate to protect them.” Over the past week students across Florida have been staging walkouts to protest the bill’s passage, including over 500 students at Winter Park High School in Orange County, Fla. on Monday, [per CNN.](https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/07/us/orange-county-florida-high-school-walkout-dont-say-gay-bill/index.html) ## Transcript Some of the ways that we understand American gay  history is through the the Stonewall Uprising as   a before and after, right? But I think before  Stonewall there was this incredible moment of   gay liberation, queer liberation,  Black liberation in the 20s in Harlem. Most people remember learning about the Harlem  Renaissance in school: Langston Hughes, blues,   jazz-- an explosion of artistic talent. But what  we don't learn about is that Harlem was also a   thriving gay community. So the way that Harlem  became a haven for LGBT life is the way that it became a haven for Black people from all over  the world, really. It became this crossroads, right? And a big part of this is the Great Migration  which obviously meant that a lot of Black   people came came North especially to cities that  are now considered Black cities like Chicago   and in Harlem in New York City. It was known at  the time as the Black mecca, right? And so it was   in some ways the largest black city in the  world. And it did of course include a lot of   energy and excitement, cabaret, blues, jazz,  so it really was in some ways a crossroads of   all of these different artistic and musical and  cultural energies. A lot of white patrons would   go to Harlem to quote-unquote "slum" because  the mores were much more relaxed, and especially   during the prohibition era, a lot of these were  in some ways uh you know speakeasies. Vices flourished in Harlem because African Americans  did not have the political power to be able to   demand that government keep these things out  of their neighborhood, and the corruption of the   police and the judges all of that enabled gay  activity as well as all kinds of other activity   to thrive in Harlem. A lot of the reasons that a lot of black folks came to Harlem was because they weren't allowed to be in other parts of the  city, and so again it's a paradoxical form   of freedom that's that's based out of you know  legal economic and political disenfranchisement   to this day when people study the Harlem  Renaissance they often don't consider the LGBTQ aspects of it and part of that is because many  of the gay writers did not actually identify as gay. And Langston Hughes is a wonderful figure in the  in this era because he's considered somewhat queer   but he was never fully out politically  whereas Richard Bruce Nugent is the poster boy   for someone who was unashamedly out and there certainly are many jazz figures who were gay Gladys Bentley was notorious for  wearing men's clothing in public. I think she   would be what we would call a butch lesbian. And  she wore a white tuxedo and she played with gender   There was also of course the drag ball scene  in Harlem which not everyone talks about that's   that goes all the way back to the 20s in Harlem,  and so it was quite a free time and ironically   that freedom of sexual expression as well  as gender fluidity really petered out. The great depression is is said to have caused the  the downfall of the of the Harlem Renaissance   as well as the increasing conservatism in  American culture after the second world war   That conservatism is one of the reasons the Harlem  Renaissance isn't remembered as a time of gay liberation. So there was a retrospective closeting  so to speak of these figures. The consequences of   not teaching the period of the Harlem renaissance  as being inherently queer is that queerness   remains white in the cultural imaginary because  we don't have this story of Black queerness. I think a lot of people talk about the stonewall  rebellion in 1969 and a lot of us are trying to   re-understand it as being centered on trans women  and trans women of color, and in a sense it's a   similar story where a lot of the black and brown  um queer people were the ones who were at the   forefront of this movement. And so it's important  to uncover this history to again recover these   ancestors who really led the charge and try  to un-forget all the liberation that they created. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6155905/florida-dont-say-gay-passed/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6155905/florida-dont-say-gay-passed/"},"headline":"Florida Just Passed the \"Don't Say Gay\" Bill. 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