From left, Andre Wade, state director for Silver State Equality, Sy Bernabei, executive director and educator at Gender Justice Nevada, and Brian Martin, who serves on the Human Rights Campaign’s National Board of Governors, pose for a photo during a press conference at The LGBTQ+ Center to denounce Adam Laxalt and his support for Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, Monday April 11, 2022.
Tuesday, April 12, 2022 | 2 a.m.
LGBTQ advocates in Las Vegas are criticizing Nevada U.S. Senate hopeful Adam Laxalt for his support of Florida’s parental rights in education law — dubbed by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law — and expressing worry that Republican candidates with a similar agenda could halt equality strides accomplished by the community.
The law bans the discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms, reinforcing the “fundamental right of parents to make decisions regarding upbringing and control of their children.”
Florida’s GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law tMarch 28, receiving high praise from Republicans like Laxalt.
“Why in the world are they fighting so hard for the ability to indoctrinate kids of ages kindergarten through third grade?” Laxalt said late last month on the “Breitbart News Daily Podcast.” “There can’t be virtually any parent who would actually support the indoctrination by strangers of their children in schools.”
In Nevada, where Laxalt is running to face Democratic incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto in the November midterm elections, the Florida law is of much concern to LGBTQ advocates. They gathered Monday for a news conference to detail the concerns.
“Although we’ve made remarkable strides here in Nevada to protect the rights and dignity of LGBTQ+ people, there is a movement festering that has determined that the civil rights we have fought for and won are now being called into question,” said André Wade, state director for Silver State Equality, a statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization.
Brian Martin, who serves on the Human Rights Campaign’s national board of governors, said Laxalt had a record of being anti-LGBTQ. He opposed gay marriage in 2014 and supported banning LGBTQ people from serving openly in the military.
In a 2010 column he penned in 2010 for the National Review, Laxalt wrote, “Homosexuals are, de facto, allowed to be in the military right now. They can serve their country. They do so all around the world. Under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” however, they do not force the military to deal with an added layer of relationships. Allowing homosexuals to ‘live out’ their sexuality and their relationships in the military would cause many problems.”
John Burke, communications director of Laxalt’s campaign, did not provide a comment in response to those anti-LGBTQ claims.
Burke said the “radical left” was poisoning the country’s education system, and “Adam Laxalt will continue to stand with Nevada parents and their rights.”
Many of those at the news conference spoke in support of Cortez Masto, who has cosponsored bills supporting LGBTQ people, such as the Equality Act in 2021. But like many other politicians on both sides of the aisle, her views have evolved over time. In 2014 as attorney general, she filed a 55-page brief on behalf of Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval defending Nevada’s ban on same-sex marriage. Within that same week, though, she withdrew the brief after the 9th U.S. Circuit of Appeals issued an opinion finding it unconstitutional to exclude jurors based on sexual orientation.
“Catherine has always believed in marriage equality and protecting the LGBTQ+ community: she voted against the 2002 same-sex marriage ban in Nevada and is a proud sponsor of the Equality Act,” said Josh Marcus-Blank, a spokesperson for Cortez Masto. “When Nevada’s Republican governor was sued, her job was to defend the law until a ruling made clear that it was no longer defensible. She then worked with the governor to block efforts to keep the law on the books.”
Since DeSantis signed the bill, states like Ohio, Louisiana and Alabama have drafted similar legislation.
Sy Bernabei, executive director and educator at Gender Justice Nevada, said that suppressing any conversation about being trans or being gay sent the message that being trans or gay s both shameful and wrong.
“When we suppress any conversation, any dialogue about being trans or being gay, then what we’re telling kids is that it’s not OK,” Bernabei said. “I’m a parent. I know that when I don’t want my kids to understand things, I don’t have that conversation with them. … In a classroom, that’s where we’re supposed to foster discussions about inclusion. That’s where we’re supposed to talk about what makes us different.”
That message, Bernabei said, will lead to more LGBTQ youths dropping out of school, getting bullied or having depression. LGBTQ youths are also twice as likely to experience homelessness than their peers, according to the University of Chicago.
Bernabei, who uses they/them pronouns, has worked with more than a thousand LGBTQ youths of all ages for the last 25 years.
“Not once did I work with a young person who was just ‘going through a phase’ or a young trans or gender non-conforming person who detransitioned after coming out trans,” they said. “And I want to make this very clear: We did not break them out. They came out to us. We do not recruit. That narrative is dangerous and simply false.”
Bernabei said they has been called a “predator” and a groomer for just listening to kids.
“There’s enough of us,” Bernabei said. “We don’t need to recruit kids. There’s 20 million of us in this country. It’s because you don’t understand their journey that you think you believe it isn’t valid. ... I am free but I’m not going back, and neither are these kids. They know who they are, and whether you want to listen to them and believe them or not, they are going to be who they are. And there is no changing it.”
But not all members of the LGBTQ community feel that the “Don’t Say Gay” bill oppresses the rights of LGBTQ people. Joel Brizzee, who is the Nevada field director of the Log Cabin of Republicans, a national organization representing LGBT conservatives, is in favor of the Florida law.
“The desire for any adult to want to teach sexual orientation or gender identity to a 5-year old is a little bit creepy,” Brizzee said.
