MO bill bans LGBTQ discussion in all grades, going further than Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law

Missouri lawmakers are weighing a bill that would ban teachers from discussing gender identity or sexual orientation at any grade level, no matter the class subject.

The bill is set to be heard Tuesday morning by the Missouri Senate Education and Workforce Development Committee. It would limit any public or charter school staff member from discussing gender identity or sexual orientation unless they are a mental health care provider and have permission from a parent.

It would go further than Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law that passed last year. In Florida, the law prohibits instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through third grade, but Missouri’s does not specify a grade level.

Critics of the bill say it would prohibit LGBTQ teachers from discussing their spouses because it could indicate their sexual orientation. They say it could also ban books from being taught if they include LGBTQ characters or topics, and forbid discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in health classes.

Missouri state Sen. Mike Moon, the Ash Grove Republican behind the bill, said the intention of the bill is to allow mental health professionals to counsel students instead of staff members who may not be trained properly.

When asked in an interview with The Star if the bill would be broad enough to prohibit LGBTQ teachers from discussing spouses and potentially ban certain books, Moon indicated it might.

“Gender identity and sexual orientation conversations would be prohibited. If they think that would be included, then it likely will be,” Moon said.

Shira Berkowitz, the senior director of policy and advocacy for PROMO Missouri, an organization that advocates for LGBTQ rights in Missouri, said the bill would stifle the visibility of LGBTQ students and parents.

“It’s a book ban. It’s a curriculum ban. And it encourages an environment of bullying,” Berkowitz said.

Under the bill, Berkowitz said teachers would not be able to discuss any LGBTQ history or any book that involves LGBTQ people or topics. It would also prohibit LGBTQ parents from participating in their children’s school, Berkowitz said.

“Principals or school personnel would be banned from discussing bullying or harassment that a student may endure, if at the root of that is because they’re gay or transgender,” Berkowitz said.

Maharat Rori Picker Neiss said she is concerned the bill would prohibit her son, who is transgender, from talking about his advocacy work around a teacher because it is a reference to transgender rights and could spark a prohibited conversation about gender identity.

Neiss, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis and whose maharat title means she is an ordained Orthodox Jewish leader, said she and her son have been fighting this kind of legislation for four years. Her son is 11, but has been testifying at committee hearings since he was eight.

“I would just ask people to know that there are real people who are being harmed, not only by the passing of these bills, but just a discussion of these bills,” Neiss said.

Neiss said if teachers are worried about potential ramifications for discussing these topics, it would create an educational environment where they are scared to say anything.

“And that means that we have no intellectual curiosity, no ability to actually see other people and experience diversity, and no opportunity to grow as a society that comes from all of that exploration and grappling and wrestling and exploring,” Neiss said.

In neighboring Kansas, a bill introduced by Kansas state Rep. Adam Thomas, an Olathe Republican, states that parents would be able to object to any educational materials “on the basis that such material or activity harms the student or impairs the parent’s sincerely held beliefs, values or principles.”

That language would likely give parents an ability to object to a broad range of material, including LGBTQ-related topics. The Kansas bill is scheduled for a hearing on Wednesday.

The Missouri bill has gained national attention ahead of the hearing, with organizations like the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ suicide prevention organization, and GLSEN, an organization advocating for LGBTQ rights in schools, speaking out against the bill.

In a poll from the Trevor Project, 71% of LGBTQ youth and 86% of specifically transgender and nonbinary youth said their mental health was negatively affected by laws restricting their rights.

Advocates have already testified this year against a bevy of anti-LGBTQ bills that would ban transgender student athletes from girls’ sports and prohibit gender-affirming medical procedures for minors.

There were at least 27 anti-LGBTQ bills proposed by Missouri Republicans this session. Missouri is behind only Oklahoma, which had 32 bills filed as of Feb. 6, according to a legislation tracker from the ACLU.