South Florida House Representative Dr. James Bush III Only Democrat Yes Vote On ‘Don’t Say, Gay’.
Channel: Queer News Tonight
Date: 2022-02-28

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In this episode: 

Say it ain’t so. This week the Florida house republican Joe Harding got DON’T SAY GAY passed and it is now heading to the senate.  It was expected. The bill passed in a 69-47 near-partisan vote. What was a surprise was the fact that a single democrat in Florida voted… YES. District 109 covering Opa Locka and Hialeah, Miami Dade County Democratic Representative Dr. James Bush III voted in favor of the bill. The black, very religious, retired educator. While surprising at first, after research, it’s really not such a surprise. Dr. Bush signs his Facebook posts with “To God Be The Glory.”  I have deep faith too… so no issues with that. But I’m LGBTQ.  Studies show that Black straight men, like Representative Bush, have among the lowest support of the gay community of just 38%.  Less than half of what polls show from the broad community of nearly 80% support.  But worse, those same studies also show that religious black straight men, like Representative Bush, have the absolutely lowest embracement of LGBTQ (half again at just 20% support).  Leading LGBTQ advocacy organizations have to lead the fight for acceptance, especially noting the difficult discrimination LGBTQ people of color receive in their own communities. Representative Bush’s Facebook page includes posts with his friend Representative Chris Latvala, the Republican co-sponsor of HB 1557 Don’t Say, Gay. There is another post about students visiting the capital and saying that he is “never too busy to encourage them to pursue their dreams and aspirations.” Apparently, that does not include students dreaming who they are as LGBTQ+. Another clue is a February 17 post with the President and CEO of Florida Coalition For Children. An ultra-conservative religious faith organization that rejects LGBTQ, Representative Bush neglects to identify the President of the organization as Kurt Kelly. Kelly is criticized by civil rights organizations for their support of The Patriot Academy, an organization that trains and educates young Floridians in many areas including religious anti-LGBTQ embracement also supported by the American Family Association. Soon “Don’t Say Gay” will become the law of the land and then education observers say that the beachhead this bill will enable will expand in dramatic repression, some even say erasure of LGBTQ in schools.  Miami-Dade Counties Representative James Bush III was Florida’s only democrat to go along with the steps in complete rejection of the Florida LGBTQ+ community.

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