Florida Legislation Goes Ahead With The Don’t Say Gay Bill. Amidst Backlash, Disney CEO, Finally Takes A Stand
While I like to see minor changes for the marginalised, I have to admit that we are nowhere near where we should be to equality for them. The LGBTQ+ community is one of the most marginalized communities, not only in India but all over the world. In the ongoing conflict in the US regarding the Don’t Say Gay bill, the news has come up that Florida has passed the bill. People have also opposed Disney for denouncing saying anything against the bill. However, Disney outlined the next steps to be taken for the bill.
For anyone who is unaware, the Don’t Say Gay bill is a no homo promo law that essentially means laws that prohibit the ‘promotion’ of homosexuality. The Don’t Say Gay bill essentially prohibits the conversation around sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten to third grade. The republican led Florida legislation has passed the bill which essentially marginalised LGBTQ+ children and curbs their identity.
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Many democrats from the white house and the entertainment industry have been vocal about their opposition to the bill. The proposal has now been moved to the desk of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis who is expected to sign it into a law. Rep. Carlos G. Smith who is a gay Democrat says, “This bill, from its introduction, has been used as a vehicle to marginalize and attack LGTBQ people,” he added according to India Today, “sends a terrible message to our youth that there is something wrong with LGBTQ people, that there is something so dangerous or inappropriate about us that we have to be prohibited and censored from the classroom.” The Don’t Say Gay bill states that talks about sexual orientation and gender identities will be prohibited in classrooms from kindergarten to third grade in any way that isn’t age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for the students. I can’t with how they are essentially depriving LGBTQ+ students of their identity.
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Republican Rep. Joe Harding and other Republican lawmakers in Florida have argued that this subject should be broached by parents and not educators. This bill is allegedly not meant to stop conversations about these topics as a whole but will prohibit it from being a part of the curriculum. I don’t understand why that should also be prohibited. However, Democrats have argued that the language used in the bill is vague and can have multiple interpretations which could account for lawsuits by parents making the teachers avoid the subject as a whole.
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After being put on blast for their lack of protest against the Don’t Say Gay bill, Disney has finally decided to take a stance on the subject. CEO Bob Chapek told his shareholders that the company has secretly tried to persuade the legislature but have failed. He acknowledged that no matter how well-intentioned their political approach was, they were unable to “get the job done.” Chapek promised to do more oppose the Don’t Say Gay bill and said that Disney would sign a statement saying they would put in the effort to oppose such bills and legislative efforts all around the country. He also pledged $5 million towards the rights of the LGBTQ+ community. Chapek talked about the backlash Disney got for not opposing the bill and said that they believed they would be more helpful working behind the scenes.” We were hopeful that our long-standing relationships with those lawmakers would enable us to achieve a better outcome. But despite weeks of effort, we were ultimately unsuccessful,” said Chapek according to sources.
Chapel said that in his conversation with Gov. DeSantis regarding the Don’t Say Gay bill, the latter assured him that he does not want this bill to be used against the LGBTQ+ community in any way and will not be harming kids and families from the community.
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