GOOD RIDDANCE

R.I.P.: Tennessee’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill Dies (Again) In House Committee

stacey campfieldStacy Campfield can’t catch a break: The homophobic state Senator from Tennessee has been trying to force an anti-gay measure on the Legislature for five years and they just won’t bite. The latest version of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill that Campfield originated in 2008 died in a House subcommittee on Tuesday for lack of a second.

Originally the measure would have banned teachers and administrators from discussing homosexuality with students—enforcing only “natural human reproduction science” in kindergarten through eighth grade.

The bill passed the Tennessee Senate in 2011 but didn’t clear the House. A newer version of the bill, introduced in January, would have instructed educators to tell parents if a student came out in school.

Rep. John Ragan (R-Oak Ride) also hoped to add a amendment instructing teachers to give students a referral for a therapist if they raised “lifestyle issues” like being gay.  “I’m disappointed. I thought it was a good bill. It was about school safety,” says Ragan, who plans to reintroduce the measure in the next legislative session.

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