The Don’t Say Gay Settlement: A Papier-Mâché Shield
Note to readers: This guest column was written by Donald J. Murdaugh, Class of '25 at the University of Florida Levin College of Law. As many readers of this blog are aware, in 2022, during the heat of his war against “woke,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law the bill known colloquially as Don’t Say Gay. A little over two weeks ago, a group of plaintiffs who had challenged the law’s constitutionality in federal court signed a Settlement Agreement (the “Settlement”) with the Florida Department of Education (“DoE”). The group of plaintiffs, comprising students, parents, educators, and pro-LGBTQ advocates, hailed the Settlement as a victory that protects civil liberties for LGBTQ students and educators. Specifically, their attorney claimed that the Settlement “safeguards against hate and bullying” and said, “Simply put, the State of Florida has now made it clear that L.G.B.T.Q.+ kids, parents and teachers in Florida can, in fact, say they are gay