Recently another religious right group, the American Family Association, came out in support of the bill via an article on its 'news' webpage, American Family News:
President Biden and his administration are frazzled by state efforts that directly oppose the left's agenda to keep parents out of the loop while they sexualize young public school students.Cultural issues writer Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute (IFI) finds Biden's strong opposition to House Bill 1557, which discourages classroom discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity in the primary grade levels, very revealing. "They're saying, 'We want to use our youngest grades to [have] teachers lead discussions on homosexuality or cross-dressing;' that's in effect what they're saying," Higgins notes. "People need to listen to that and take them seriously."
That is a disgusting lie. But then the article goes even lower via the following passage:
Another important part of the bill would allow parents to have access to their children's student records. "I think that this is aimed directly at the many school districts now who are affirming kids' trans identities and concealing what they're doing from their parents," Higgins submits.
Higgins - and the AFA - are deliberately minimizing an alarming amendment to the bill which would have forced school officials to out LGBTQ kids to their parents, even if the act could lead to the possible abuse or neglect by said parents. The amendment was withdrawn by the bill's sponsor because of the firestorm it caused.
Just like the Family Research Council, AFA's brand is the demonization of LGBTQ people. And just like FRC, the American Family Association was declared a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center because of this.
SPLC has compiled a list of vile statements against LGBTQ people made by AFA spokespeople, including:
“Homosexuality is a poor and dangerous choice, and has been proven to lead to a litany of health hazards to not only the individuals but also society as a whole.” — AFA Action Alert, July 20, 2012.“If President Obama, Congressional Democrats, and homosexual activists get their wish, your son or daughter may be forced to share military showers and barracks with active and open homosexuals who may very well view them with sexual interest.” — AFA press release, February 2010.“Homosexuality is not only harmful to homosexuals themselves, but also to children and to society.” — Stephen Bennett, AFA writer, 2004. “As with smoking, homosexual behavior’s ‘second hand’ effects threaten public health. … Thus, individuals who choose to engage in homosexual behavior threaten not only their own lives, but the lives of the general population.” — Gary Glenn, president of Michigan chapter of AFA, 2001.“[T]he homosexual lifestyle is characterized by anonymous sexual encounters and celebration of sexual obsession and perversion unparalleled in any other social group.” — Richard Howe, “Homosexuality in America,” AFA publication, 1994.“Homosexuality is a poor and dangerous choice, and has been proven to lead to a litany of health hazards to not only the individuals but also society as a whole.” — AFA Action Alert, July 20, 2012.“Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler, and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine and six million dead Jews.” — Bryan Fischer, AFA director of issue analysis for government and public policy, 2010.
That last comment by former AFA spokesman Bryan Fischer is not only especially vile, but highly ironic considering how AFA says that Florida's bill would protect children. In 2012, Fischer called for children in same-sex households to be kidnapped and taken away from their parents:
One would think that if supporters and sponsors of Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill knew the element they were attracting, it would influence them to withdraw their support.
Unfortunately, I don't think they would care.
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