Take, for example Senator Ted Cruz, who recently suggested that because Disney decided to speak out against the bigoted Florida legislation-after receiving backlash from its employees for initially refusing to do so-it’s obviously going to introduce NC-17 story lines to its children’s programming. Obviously, second-grade teachers are not talking to eight-year-olds about sexual intercourse, but you wouldn’t know by listening to conservatives, who apparently believe that anyone who opposes this law is basically advocating for showing kids graphic sexual imagery. One of the most disturbing aspect of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, which prohibits “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” in primary schools (and according to critics, could be applied to later grades), is the idea that merely acknowledging the existence of LGBTQ+ individuals is somehow inappropriate for children.
