A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit that attempted to block Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Parental Rights In Education law which limits when students can be taught about gender identity and sexual orientation, according to CBS Miami.
In October, Florida students and their parents filed a lawsuit alleging that DeSantis’ Parental Rights in Education law, deemed “Don’t Say Gay” by critics, which prohibits lessons on gender identity and sexual orientation in K-3 classrooms, is unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor dismissed the lawsuit Wednesday because the plaintiffs failed to “allege sufficient facts” and display their legal standing that allowed them to challenge the law, according to CBS Miami.
“Plaintiffs have shown a strident disagreement with the new law, and they have alleged facts to show its very existence causes them deep hurt and disappointment,” Winsor wrote in the dismissal. “But to invoke a federal court’s jurisdiction, they must allege more. Their failure to do so requires dismissal.”
This dismissal is the second of the lawsuit in the previous five months; Winsor dismissed an earlier version of the lawsuit in September because the plaintiffs had failed to show that their legal standing allowed them to pursue the case, CBS Miami reported. The dismissal, however, allowed for the lawsuit to be filed again. (RELATED: DeSantis Proposal Will Make Educators Decide If Teachers’ Unions Are ‘Really Worth The Money,’ Experts Say)
People hold placards and shout slogans as they protest outside the office of Florida State Senator Ileana Garcia in Coral Gables, Florida, on March 9, 2022. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
“Thanks to Governor DeSantis, the Parental Rights in Education law empowers parents and protects children,” Bryan Griffin, press secretary for DeSantis, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “It’s common sense. We appreciate that the courts continue to recognize this and reject activist attempts to overturn the duly enacted laws of the state of Florida.”
School boards have taken action against LGBTQ people throughout Florida because of the law, the complaint alleged, including the Miami-Dade County school board, which voted to not recognize October as LGBTQ history month, and Pasco County school board’s banning “safe space” stickers. Halting the law would not guarantee that the school boards would reverse the policies they have already enacted, Winsor argued.
“Regardless, there is a redressability problem because there are insufficient facts to show a nonspeculative likelihood that the school board would adopt such a resolution if the court enjoined it from enforcing the challenged law,” Winsor wrote.
DeSantis’ office and the attorneys for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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