FORT WORTH, Texas — Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants to pursue a Florida-style “don’t say gay” bill in Texas during the next legislative session, according to a Monday campaign email.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill on March 28. The legislation — called the “Parental Rights in Education” bill but referred to as the “don’t say gay” bill by opponents — bars classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity for students in kindergarten through third grade or “in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.”
“I will make this law a top priority in the next session,” Patrick said in the email, which was reported on by several news outlets.
The Star-Telegram has reached out to Patrick’s campaign and office for comment but has not received a response.
Patrick’s email took aim at The Walt Disney Co. Disney issued a statement condemning the law the day it was signed, saying it “should never have passed and should never been signed into law.” The company had been criticized by employees for not doing more to oppose the bill.
“Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that,” Disney said in the statement.
In Monday’s email Patrick said he was angered by the company’s “over the top resistance to a Florida law that simply says schools cannot sexualize children in elementary school,” according to the email, a copy of which was tweeted by Patrick Tuesday. Patrick called on Education Committee to address the issue in interim hearings ahead of the legislative session that starts in January.
Opponents of the bill say its vague language will lead to teachers not talking about gender inclusiveness in classrooms, regardless of grade level, according to the Miami Herald. DeSantis said the legislation is intended to enforce parental rights, the newspaper reported.
Patrick, a Republican, is running for reelection and advanced out of the March primary without a runoff. His general election opponent has not been set, as Democrats Mike Collier and Michelle Beckley are contending for a place on the November ballot in a May 24 runoff.
Lisa Daly, the secretary for PFLAG Fort Worth, an organization for LGBTQ people, their families and allies, said to her laws like the one in Florida are intended to eradicate LGBTQ kids by not acknowledging them. She thinks good teachers would quit and kids would be traumatized by the policy.
She wishes elected officials would focus on issues like the electric grid, the environment and the teacher shortage “instead of wasting their time and energy picking on the least of us, LGBT kids.”
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