State representatives in Pennsylvania have introduced a more restrictive version of Florida’s highly-criticised ‘Don’t Say Gay‘ law.
The bill was spearheaded by Republican Stephanie Borowicz, who is the lead sponsor on the legislation.
At a rally in Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, Borowicz said: “It is patterned after the Florida bill, but mine goes further,” according to PennLive Patriot News.
The bill, currently titled House Bill 2813, would mean that public and charter schools “may not offer instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity to a student in kindergarten through fifth grade.”
Florida’s version of the law went into effect this year, bans the same topics from being taught up to the third grade.
Any lessons taking place in higher grades will be checked to be age-appropriate.
Cases of anti-LGBTQ+ hate online rose 400% following the passing of the bill.
The rep has had a lot of involvement in preventing progressive education reform.
In August, Borowicz and 20 other Republican lawmakers called for the removal of the gender/gender identity resource page from the Department of Education’s website.
On 12 September, she gave a speech where she bragged about yelling at gun control advocates, Moms Demand Action For Gun Sense in America.
PA state Rep. Stephanie Borowicz (R) brags that she yelled at Moms Demand Action volunteers and said she wouldn't let them into her office: "I always say 'God and guns got us here, and God and guns will keep us here' … [Moms Demand] you're not getting anywhere in my office." pic.twitter.com/Z0ePzwtsUv
— Heartland Signal (@HeartlandSignal) September 12, 2022
Borowicz wants the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ style ban to be a blanket and go up to the 12th grade.
“It really needs to be protected up through 12th grade; we need to go all the way,” she stated at the rally.
The representative has previously supported state Senate measure SB 1278, which would allow schools to be sued for what they deemed “not age-appropriate” material at any grade level.
The law would also require schools to notify parents of students’ use of health services, including if the student utilised mental health services.
Parents would also be able to sue if information was withheld from them regarding their children.
Borowicz has denounced attempts to mandate the use of trans and non binary students chosen pronouns.
Other Republican legislators, such as Milou MacKenzie have endorsed the bill.
She said the bill was necessary as “these ideologies have crept into the curriculum and into the mindset of the faculty.”
Casey Pick, a senior fellow at The Trevor Project condemned the law.
“Laws like this put [schools] in a terrible position where they have to act very cautiously and create broad buffer zones where they may restrict more speech than they’re required to just to avoid being sued,” she stated.
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