Florida vs. Disney continues in a classroom. Florida parents need to stop listening to conservative lies

 Let me make note to start this piece that I have relatives and former classmates living in Florida. One classmate invited me to take a vacation down there in the Sunshine State two years ago, and I turned the guy down, but didn't tell him why.

Another friend recently moved back to the 518 after the passing of his mother, who passed at 102 while living in Florida. As I told him, I wouldn't go down there for any reason, even on vacation.

Why should I spend time down there in a state run by narrow minded bigots?

Florida, dating back to at least the 70's and Anita Bryant's anti-gay public stands, has been a bastion of homophobia for a very long time. Now, former president Donald Trump makes his home there, and one of his wanna-be clones, Ron DeSantis, is the governor, whose unconstitutional policies target the LGBTQ+ community, as well as other minorities, as he aspires for the White House next year.

However, the controversial Parental Rights in Education act, aka "Don't Say Gay", is in fact discriminatory, and its vague wording (intentional) opens the door for parents to let loose their inner bigots against things they don't understand or care to accept.

Case in point: On May 3, 5th grade teacher Jenna Barbee screened Disney's 2022 film, "Strange World" for her class. A central character acknowledges early on that he's gay, but it's not a pertinent plot point.

Still, Shannon Rodriguez, a member of the local school board, supported by the right wing activist group Moms For Liberty, raised a stink, even though the objectionable content is, at best, minimal. You can't tell bigots things like that, because they don't think. They only react.

Farron Cousins breaks it down:

We live in a more inclusive, welcoming society in 2023, Mrs. Rodriguez, and it's way past time you and your fellow bigots understood that. As Farron points out, the Parental Rights Act only applies to grades Kindergarten through 3rd grade, and no further, though that could change if these narrow minded screwballs have their way. In other words, Mrs. Rodriguez, you are out of line, and you owe Ms. Barbee an apology yesterday. You don't care if she loses her job, because you don't want the truth to get in the way of a manufactured narrative that is wrong.

And if Ms. Barbee loses her job in Florida, I know a few schools here in the 518 that would happily welcome her.