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Thursday, December 21, 2023

Has The Florida GOP / DeSantis Regeime Gone Completely Mad?

"Don't Say Period"

After Erasing the LGBTQ Community, Republicans in Florida Are After Basic Female Health Education


Note: "Regime" is a form or government at odds with the general population. 

When did the don't say period law passed in Florida?
The bill, Florida House Bill 1069, took effect July 1 and limits K-12 instruction on sex-ed issues – from sexually-transmitted diseases (STD) and reproductive health to gender identity. The bill also bans schools from enforcing policies that would require teachers to use students' preferred pronouns. Aug 4, 2023


Things are getting exponentially worse in Florida with GOP lawmakers pushing for an law it will prevent children and teens from learning about the menstrual cycle before sixth grade.

This goes against the advice of medical professionals who believe children should learn about puberty and the changes it brings before they reach it.

Many girls get periods before sixth grade'


Another issue is that many girls get their periods when they are 8 or 9, way before starting sixth grade.

And though the bill does not say it will ban talking about periods, Republican state Rep. Stan McClain said his bill would include restrictions on girls talking about their menstrual cycles.


Democratic Rep. tried to reason with McClain

Democratic state Rep. Ashley Gantt reminded McClain that girls get periods before sixth grade. She asked whether the bill would ban those girls from talking about them.

Gantt asked, “So if little girls experience their menstrual cycle in fifth or fourth grade, would that prohibit conversations from them since they are in a grade lower than sixth grade?"

McClain responded, “It would.”

DeSantis fights “woke” ideology

Banning period talk is another intriguing bill that goes against “woke” ideologies DeSantis despises.

Other laws included gender talk, the so-called “don’t say gay” bill, and erasing diversity from books. Additionally, many books have been banned, which begs the question: how will children learn about real life outside classrooms?

See Opinion: Florida Republicans’ stunning bout of misogyny and ignorance - by Jill Filipovic

Most girls and women menstruate, or will menstruate once they mature; this is not a sexualized fact and should not be a source of shame. It is a fact of life. That Republicans in Florida choose to shroud this reality and to force young people into silence says very little about any inherent shame in menstruation or living in a female body. It says everything about the legislators’ fears and anxieties about girls and women knowing themselves, their sexuality and having knowledge itself. And it’s that sad and narrow view – not menstruation – that should be treated as shameful.


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