Members of the LGBTQ community and their advocates spoke out in the state Capitol Wednesday against the latest assortment of proposed legislation they call “smoke bombs” — culture war measures targeting the LGBTQ community.
They contend these measures have been crafted to distract Floridians from the “failure” of Gov. Ron DeSantis and his legislative allies to address the “real crisis” facing the state — lack of affordability, a housing emergency, and skyrocketing property insurance costs.
“These distractions are intended to take our attention away from real corruption in the state Florida,” said Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando, speaking specifically to a bill (SB 1010) that calls for third-degree felony charges and up to $100,000 in fines for doctors and school counselors if they advise minors to undergo transgender therapies.
“It’s another smoke bomb intended to distract from the current grand jury investigation into the $10 million he laundered for Hope Florida and stole to pay for political advertisements,” Smith added, referring to the investigation into Casey DeSantis’ Hope Florida Foundation that began last fall in Tallahassee.
That investigation is focused on a $10 million donation the DeSantis administration steered to the foundation from a settlement between a Medicaid provider and the state over alleged overpayments. The foundation is reportedly under investigation for in turn steering money to nonprofits that then gave money to Keep Florida Clean, a political committee headed by Attorney General James Uthmeier, who was Ron DeSantis’ chief of staff at the time.
State Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, is a candidate for Orlando mayor next year. She said that despite the “hyper politicization” of anti-LGBTQ proposals, the public is more open to that community.
“I had a meeting with Orlando conservatives at the beginning of last year, and later I sat in on a trans support group to hear what their concerns were about policy, about politics, about their communities,” she said. “And despite what you would assume are two very different groups of people, their needs were exactly the same. They want us to focus on affordability. They want us to focus on safety. They want us to focus on good jobs.”
Equality Florida, the state’s leading LGBTQ advocacy group, organized the press conference in Tallahassee, and invited parents of transgendered children to speak. Stratton Pollitzer, the group’s executive director, said SB 1010 goes “much further” than legislation passed in 2023 banning doctors from providing gender-affirming care to patients under 18 years of age.
“This would include counselors and therapists,” he said. “We know that these children have special needs. We heard that from a parent today, who talked about the crippling depression his son faced until they got a good therapist. This creates a scenario where you won’t be able to find a therapist willing to talk to your family at all because they’re afraid of a $100,000 lawsuit.”
‘Sad and angry’Juan Dominguez said that he and his ex-wife didn’t know why their son Kai was “sad and angry at the world” and neither did the doctors and psychologists who examined him, until they met a doctor in Miami who ultimately concluded that he had gender dysphoria and was potentially transgender. Dominguez says the challenge right now as a family is getting Kai gender-confirming medication, since the 2023 law prohibits physicians from treating minors.
“The state is becoming very challenging to live in if you have a transgender family,” he said, adding that when Kai becomes an adult, he will make a decision about potentially gender-affirming or sexual reassignment surgery. “That’s not to say that he’s going to do it anyways — transgender people don’t necessarily go in the path of surgery right away.”
Among the other bills LGBTQ advocates are opposing this session are HB 347/SB 426, labeled the “Adoption and Display of of Flags by Government Entities” but what Equality Florida is calling simply the “Ban Gay Pride Flag” measure. It would prohibit governmental entities from displaying, placing, or causing to be placed certain flags on real property.
“This is literally the fourth year in a row that they have tried to do this bill, and every single year, we the people have defeated it,” said Smith.
Other bills on Equality Florida’s radar this session include:
HB 641/SB 1642, “Gender Identity Employment Practices,” which Equality Florida labels the “Don’t Say Gay or Trans at Work” bill.It would enact regulations on pronoun use in public and certain private workplaces. It would shield employees from accountability for anti-trans harassment via intentional misgendering, and prohibit inclusion of a transgender or nonbinary gender option on any job application or related employment form. The bill also would prohibit LGBTQ-related cultural competency training requirements for government workers.
HB 1001/SB 1134 “Official Actions of Local Governments.”This bill would stop cities and counties from funding, promoting, or taking official action as it relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion; prohibit counties and municipalities from expending funds for diversity, equity, and inclusion offices or officers; and says that county commissioners, city council members, or any other county or municipal official acting in official capacity who violates certain provisions “commits misfeasance or malfeasance in office.”
Equality Florida contends that the bill would effectively ban local governments from a range of actions like hosting or supporting Pride events, offering LGBTQ+ cultural competency training, or recognizing contributions of Black civil rights leaders during Black History Month.
Most Americans support anti-discrimination protections for transgender people, according to a Pew Research Center survey from a year ago. But that poll also found the public favors GOP-backed policies barring gender transitions for minors and compelling trans athletes to play on teams that match their sex assigned at birth.
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