Some Florida educators are raising the alarm, saying the state appears to be chipping away at separation of church and state and creating a divide between teachers and students over gender identity.
Multiple media outlets that teachers attending recent Florida Department of Education training on a new civics initiative say the over opposing views.
At the same time, Florida鈥檚 Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed the Don鈥檛 Say Gay law by opponents, went into effect July 1.
Ahead of its enactment, school districts received guidance from the Florida Department of Education about what it means for teachers at that level.
Some to mean that teachers have to take down LGBTQ stickers on doors and report to parents if a student comes out to them.
Andrew Spar, president, said the guidance threatens the bond between teacher and student.
鈥淭he concern, when you hear about 'don't have gay-straight alliances in our schools, don't post pride posters in your classrooms,'鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is breaking down the ability of teachers to have those important relationships with students that help them succeed in learning and in life.鈥�
The law immediately bans instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade.
The it still has to develop guidelines for the part of the law over what is considered "age appropriate" for students above third grade.
A lawsuit against the legislation was brought by LGBTQ groups in March, though the state and some school districts have the case.
鈥淔ar from banning discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity, the legislation expressly allows age- and developmentally appropriate education on those subjects,鈥� attorneys for the state wrote in a court filing challenging the law.
Spar said the state has been 鈥渋ntentionally confusing鈥� in its language surrounding the law.
鈥淭his bill talks about not teaching sex education in grades K-3,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e don't, we haven't, we aren't and we won't teach sex education in grades K-3. It's not part of the curriculum. It's not something we do. And so this bill was really based on a false premise.鈥�
The Biden administration has taken special interest in the Florida law, and is urging students and parents to file complaints with the U.S. Department of Education鈥檚 Office for Civil Rights if they feel discriminated against.
鈥淭his is not an issue of 鈥榩arents鈥� rights,鈥欌�� White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement Friday. 鈥淭his is discrimination, plain and simple. It鈥檚 part of a disturbing and dangerous nationwide trend of right-wing politicians cynically targeting LGBTQI+ students, educators, and individuals to score political points. It encourages bullying and threatens students鈥� mental health, physical safety and well-being. It censors dedicated teachers and educators who want to do the right thing and support their students.鈥�
The debate between the Biden administration and Florida leadership has extended to the backed by Gov. DeSantis.
In a , DeSantis slammed the federal government for its stance on , an academic concept that examines the country鈥檚 history through the lens of race and society.
鈥淲hile the Biden administration is seeking to award grants to indoctrinate students with ideologies like Critical race theory, in Florida we have focused on Civics Excellence, teaching accurate American History without an ideological agenda,鈥� DeSantis said in the release. 鈥淥ur students and teachers have worked hard to elevate their Civics Excellence and are proving to the nation that Florida is the national model for cultivating great citizens.鈥�
But Spar said the latest series of Supreme Court rulings has already muddied separation of church and state, and he's worried the state鈥檚 new civics initiative will alienate students who come from different religious backgrounds.
鈥淭he governor has accused teachers and others of indoctrinating students,鈥� Spar said. 鈥淚t seems like the Department of Education might be setting itself up to try to indoctrinate students based on religious beliefs that are not the beliefs of the families of many of our students.鈥�
The governor鈥檚 office said 2,500 teachers will complete the civics training by the end of July, and is promising them each a $3,000 bonus.
Information from the News Service of Florida was used in this report.
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