Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed 30 bills into law Wednesday, Jan. 8. One of those bills was legislation that requires schools to notify parents if their child’s gender identity does not align with their sex.
The new law also allows parents to opt their child out of instruction related to sexuality and gender. It further bans lessons on sexuality for students in kindergarten through third grade.
The legislation defines “sexuality content” as “any oral or written instruction, presentation, image or description of sexual concepts or gender ideology provided in a classroom setting.”
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The bill emphasizes that “a parent has a fundamental right to make decisions concerning the upbringing, education, and care of the parent’s child.”
“If you’re a parent, you want to be informed with what’s going on in your child’s life,” DeWine said. “The parents are the best teachers, they’re the first teachers, the best teachers.”
Critics of the bill have dubbed it the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, drawing comparisons to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, passed and signed into law in 2022.
LGBTQ+ advocates in Ohio warn this law could put transgender children in danger if they come from unsupportive families.
Equality Ohio Executive Director Dwayne Steward expressed his disappointment in a statement: “It’s deeply disappointing that Gov. DeWine has signed HB 8 when it was opposed by educators and the LGBTQ+ community alike because it punishes teachers and staff for supporting LGBTQ+ students who are already targets of bullying and harassment. We will continue to fight for an Ohio that makes all students feel safe and secure in their schools.”
Civil rights advocates are planning to file a lawsuit, according to reports from WEWS News.
In addition to the gender identity provisions, the new law also mandates that public schools allow students to leave class for religious instruction.
