Axios Atlanta has reported that Georgia has introduced a similar bill to Florida’s recent legislation they dubbed the “‘Don’t Say Gay’ legislation”. The report claims that SB 377 targets LGBTQ youth, and cites Jeff Graham of Georgia Equality, who claims that this bill would have a “chilling effect on children who want to talk about their families in schools” and “it’s a concerted effort to. . . eliminate LGBTQ folks from public life.”

The Chalkboard Review staff has taken the time to read SB 377—and have found:

The specific text of the seven-page bill states that “no private or nonpublic school or program subject to this chapter” may fund or complete any program, curriculum, project or activity that:
- Promotes or encourages stereotyping based on race, color, sex, ethnicity, or national origin
- Compels students to adopt or affirm inherent superiority or inferiority of any race, color, sex, ethnicity, or national origin
- Promotes, compels, or encourages classroom discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in Kindergarten through 5th grade (primary school under Georgia law)

No text or language states that any issue related to LGBTQ is banned from discussion, questions by students, or historical analysis in grades 6-12, nor does any part of this legislation ban anyone identifying as LGBTQ from “public life”.

The bill does state in lines 169-73 that conversations about sex, sexuality, and LGBTQ issues may be addressed and encouraged in a manner that is appropriate for the age and developmental stage of the student.