White House press secretary Jen Psaki narrowed in on Florida’s “Parental Rights in Education” bill Monday when pressed by Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy.
Doocy asked for the White House’s position on what age children should be taught about sexual orientation and gender identity.
“I would say, first of all, Peter, we have spoken to the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill in the past, I believe is what you are referring to, and made clear that as we look at this law, what we think it’s a reflection of is politicians in Florida propagating misinformed, hateful policies that do absolutely nothing to address the real issues,” Psaki said. “The Department of Education is well positioned and ready to evaluate what to do next and its implementation on whether it violates federal civil rights law.”
The press secretary noted that parents are looking to leaders to support and ensure the equal treatment of students.
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“So if you guys oppose this law that bans classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3, does the White House support that kind of classroom instruction before kindergarten?” Doocy asked. (RELATED: Gov. DeSantis Calls Out Disney For Supporting ‘Sexualizing Kindergarteners’ And ‘Lining Their Pockets’ Off The CCP)
“Do you have examples of schools in Florida that are teaching kindergarteners about sex education?” Psaki interjected.
“I’m just asking for the president’s opinion,” Doocy pressed.
“I think that’s a relevant question, because I think this is a politically charged, harsh law that is putting parents and LGBTQ+ kids in a very difficult, heartbreaking circumstance, and so I actually think that’s a pretty relevant question,” Psaki said before moving on.
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the “Parental Rights in Education” bill into law March 28. The legislation prohibits classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade and requires schools to notify parents of any health services and of any changes to their child’s physical, mental or emotional health, except in cases of child abuse.
It also gives parents the right to opt their children out of certain health services offered in public schools.
Opponents have dubbed the bill the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, though it does not indicate that school administrators and students are prohibited from using the term “gay.”
Psaki previously called the bill “hateful” and claimed that it discriminates against LGBTQ students during questioning aboard Air Force One in early March.
“Let me first say that the steps we’ve seen in Texas and Florida are deeply concerning and are discriminating against exactly the kind of kids who we need to be loving and supporting,” Psaki said. “And I reference Florida because as you know they just recently passed a similar hateful bill that hurt some of the students in need.”