She said she has long been interested in writing a novel about homosexuality and religion. “To me, it’s one of the last civil rights that we haven’t granted in this country,” Picoult said of gay rights. Picoult advocated greater reproductive rights for gay couples, a theme explored in her latest novel, in an appearance Thursday at Memorial Church. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.Esteemed author Jodi L.
This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at for further information. Melissa Block, NPR News.Ĭopyright © 2022 NPR. If that means parents sue their school districts, he says, then so be it. They'll keep on teaching just as they have been. I am trying with all my power to teach kids to be OK with who they are.īLOCK: McCracken says the teachers he's talked with say they won't be silenced.
#Growing up gay memes getting asked how to
So I'm not teaching kids how to be gay in my classroom. MCCRACKEN: This is a created culture war from him so that he can achieve his political ambitions. And I can tell you, as someone who grew up as a gay boy, how real that statistic is and how dangerous it is that these Republican legislators are playing with the safety of our vulnerable youth.īLOCK: McCracken is appalled when he hears DeSantis claim that schools are, in the governor's words, sexualizing kids and, quote, "injecting transgenderism into the classroom." As a gay man, he says, it tells him and his LGBTQ students that there's something inappropriate about them, that their identity is taboo or somehow dirty.ĬLINTON MCCRACKEN: The Trevor Project found last year that 42% of LGBTQ students have considered attempting suicide. Growing up, he didn't see himself in the history books.īOTELLO: I know that I have to think a little harder when I navigate that next year, now that this bill is going to be in effect.īLOCK: The new law feels like a hateful personal attack to Clinton McCracken, who has taught art for 21 years at Howard Middle School Academy of Arts in Orlando. And as a Mexican American, he knows how important representation is. You know, they're a part of our story.īLOCK: Botello believes lessons like that can empower LGBTQ students, weaving them into America's history. Will he still feel comfortable telling students that the Revolutionary War hero, the Prussian General von Steuben, is widely believed to have been openly gay?īOTELLO: When you look back in history, there's clear examples of how these different groups that are being attacked today actually helped form our country. He teaches eighth grade American history at Osceola Middle School in rural Okeechobee, Fla., so that age appropriate language would apply to his classes. JORJE BOTELLO: Honestly, I feel like it's just a blatant attack on education.īLOCK: That's Jorje Botello. Under the law, parents can sue if they believe the school is in violation. STEPHENS: What's next? If they're going after this conversation now, where does this stop?īLOCK: Beyond K through third grade, the Florida law also says any instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity in any grade has to be, quote, "age-appropriate." Opponents say the law will effectively muzzle any discussion out of fear. And she worries about what other topics might become a target.
But Stephens fears the language is so vague, it will have a chilling effect. STEPHENS: It makes me wonder, when I talk about families in my classroom, am I going to be violating this law because the children were having discussions about what their family looks like?īLOCK: The law's sponsors say that's not the intent. But in class, they do talk a lot about kids' families, some with two moms or two dads. After all, she says, teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity isn't in the first grade curriculum. It's.īLOCK: Stephens is puzzled by the law. spoiler alert, it's not about sexual orientation or gender identity.
MELISSA BLOCK, BYLINE: Here's the question Paula Stephens hears most from her first graders in Clearwater, Fla. Governor Ron DeSantis signed it into law yesterday.ĭON DESANTIS: We will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not an indoctrination.ĬHANG: The law bans instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade.
Florida teachers are trying to figure out how the Parental Rights and Education Act, which opponents call the don't say gay bill, will affect their classrooms.