The war on the humanity and rights of our transgender friends and neighbors has seemingly been raging forever, but over the past few years, we’ve seen a serious surge. In 2022 alone, as the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) noted in January, “149 bills [...] targeted the transgender and non-binary community, with the majority targeting children [...] Anti-transgender legislation took several forms, including 80 bills aimed to prevent transgender youth from playing school sports consistent with their gender identity and 42 bills to prevent transgender and non-binary youth from receiving life-saving, medically-necessary gender-affirming healthcare.” But, as the HRC also notes, just 17 bills—which is still too many—passed.
The HRC Equality Federation Institute’s 2022 State Equality Index tracks such legislation, and at this point, it will surprise nobody that Ron DeSantis’ hatred playground was ranked in the lowest-possible quadrant, named a place where there should be a “high priority to achieve basic equality.”
And Florida, also unsurprisingly, is where DeSantis’ “war on woke” never seems to face enough meaningful pushback from people with power—and when he does, he just replaces his detractors with willing devotees.
Which brings us to DeSantis’ successful solicitation of transgender students’ health data from 12 of the Sunshine State’s public universities. At least six provided the data so far. But students, in Florida and across the country, are far from devoted to or scared of Ronald Dion DeSantis.
RELATED STORY: DeSantis is gutting Florida public education. The New York Times wants to talk about his 'brand'
Insider:
Students across Florida are planning a statewide walkout after Gov. Ron DeSantis requested all public universities comply in delivering data from student health services on transgender students who sought gender-affirming care at the institutions.
DeSantis asked to see anonymized information of any student who has experienced gender dysphoria in the past five years. In addition, he wants their ages and the dates they received gender-affirming care. The deadline to submit those records was February 10.
Insider has confirmed that University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Central Florida, Florida A&M University, Florida International University, and the University of North Florida have complied with the request, but has yet to hear back from the rest.
Students at these universities are now planning rallies for next week along with the statewide walkout on February 23.
The walkouts are sponsored or supported by groups ranging from the state’s College Democrats chapters to the Dream Defenders, with a little help from everyone’s favorite Gen Z congressman, Rep. Maxwell Frost.
Campaign Action
The 26-year-old House freshman told Insider that "The governor's abusing his power. He's targeting folks that disagree with him—people who might not see eye to eye with him, marginalized communities."
RELATED STORY: Hey DeSantis, by attacking Black history you're attacking Caribbean Floridians
And the thing is, the 44-year-old Donald Trump wannabe currently squatting in the Florida governor’s mansion doesn’t see eye to eye with much of the nation as he sets aim at keeping his constituents in a bubble where nobody talks about Black history, or the LGBTQ+ community, or has to see immigrants, or or … or anything that might possibly prevent his apparent efforts to turn his fiefdom into a white Christian ethnostate where everyone’s supposed to talk about their periods, and everyone can have all the guns they want.
As Daily Kos’ Kerry Eleveld wrote of DeSantis on Tuesday:
So, who is this potential presidential candidate? Is he the fascist we think he is? Or is he just another crackpot politician kissing up to the right-wing faction of the Republican Party? Is he the next Donald Trump? Or the next My Pillow Guy?
Only time will tell.
But Florida’s students aren’t waiting. They weren’t waiting after 2018’s massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, and they’re not waiting now. Here are just a few recent protest headlines we’ve seen from Florida students in recent weeks.
Feb. 9: FSU, FAMU students march against Gov. DeSantis' move to dismantle diversity programs
Feb. 2: University of Florida students, faculty plan to protest Monday as [former Nebraska Republican Sen. Ben] Sasse begins presidency
Jan. 31: New College of Florida students, faculty, and alumni protests Gov. DeSantis' changes to campus
Florida’s students will be in very good company next week.
As they do the dirty work for DeSantis, Florida’s legislators will be shielded from future protests, in the most oppressive way possible: by stifling the First Amendment.
Some protests in the state Capitol Rotunda may be banned when lawmakers meet for the Florida Legislature’s 2023 session, which is expected to be spiked with culture-war-inspired legislation in advance of an expected Gov. Ron DeSantis presidential campaign.
The Department of Management Services published a Florida Administrative Code rule Feb. 14, allowing law enforcement more discretion to remove protesters from the Capitol building and charge them with trespassing.
The past two regular sessions have drawn protests over the teaching of race and gender in public schools,restrictions on abortion rights, curtailment of voting rights, and the elimination of minority-access congressional districts.
The rule change is expected to go into effect March 1, a week before the start of the annual 60-day legislative session, according to the Department of State and the Joint Administrative Procedures Committee, which signed off on the proposal.
How American! Way to keep Florida free, Ronny D!