ABOVE: Gov. Ron DeSantis at Trinity Christian Academy June 1. Screenshot via NBC2/Facebook.
JACKSONVILLE | Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the anti-LGBTQ Senate Bill 1028 (SB 1028) into law at the Trinity Christian Academy June 1, the first day of LGBTQ Pride Month.
The legislation was passed April 28 and targets transgender youth. It bans the vulnerable population from playing sports that align with their gender identity, a discriminatory measure DeSantis first publicly supported April 30 on Fox News.
“The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act will empower Florida women and girls to be able to compete on a level playing field,” the governor shared via social media after his June 1 signing ceremony. “This will help ensure that opportunities for things like college scholarships will be protected for female athletes for years to come.”
After the signing, DeSantis was asked by local press about the message the bill sends to LGBTQ Floridians during Pride Month.
“First of all, it’s not a message to anything other than we’re going to protect fairness in women’s sports,” he responded. “We believe that it’s important to have integrity in the competition and we think it’s important that they be able to compete on a level playing field, and you’ve seen what’s happened when you don’t have that.”
You can watch the ceremony and exchange in full below:
The Fairness in Women’s Sports Act will empower Florida women & girls to be able to compete on a level playing field. This will help ensure that opportunities for things like college scholarships will be protected for female athletes for years to come.
📺:https://t.co/wQo4Hcl0vG— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) June 1, 2021
The Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus, which represents the interests of LGBTQ Floridians as an arm of the state’s Democratic Party, quickly condemned the bill. Caucus President Stephen Gaskill called it “shameful that Governor DeSantis chose the first day of Pride Month to sign the discriminatory trans sports ban into law.
“This transphobic legislation aims to fix a problem that doesn’t exist, and instead harms children just wanting to play sports,” he continued. “It’s clear the governor and his Republican enablers in the Legislature are dismissive of Florida’s large and visible LGBTQ+ community.”
Gaskill also noted that LGBTQ Floridians will continue fighting for civil rights, during and beyond Pride Month. “We are watching, we are working, and we are putting discriminatory politicians on notice,” he said.
Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus Region 2 Regional Director Joshua Hicks, a Jacksonville local, also condemned the legislation.
“Jacksonville is a welcoming and inclusive city governed by a human rights ordinance that bans discrimination based on gender identity and expression,” he shared. “It’s shameful and disgusting that Governor DeSantis chose our community to sign discrimination into law on the first day of Pride Month.”
Equality Florida, the state’s largest LGBTQ-focused civil rights organization, subsequently condemned the governor’s actions. They noted that SB 1028 is “the first explicitly anti-LGBTQ bill signed into law since 1997.”
“Even after hearing directly from trans kids and their parents about the real harms felt from this anti-trans sports ban, Governor DeSantis proudly put his signature on this hateful bill – joining ultra-conservative states like Mississippi and West Virginia who have shamefully done the same,” Equality Florida Senior Political Director Joe Saunders shared.
“This cruel law bans all transgender girls – as young as middle school kids – from participating in school sports and kicks existing players off their team,” he continued. “It’s deeply harmful to already at-risk transgender children: who are some of the most bullied and marginalized in our school systems.”
To show their support for transgender youth across the state, Equality Florida will host a number of rallies to #LetKidsPlay. More than 100 current and former elected officials throughout the state urged DeSantis to do so and veto SB 1028 on May 12.
A virtual rally was scheduled for 2 p.m., with in-person events following in Bradenton, Sarasota, South Florida, Space Coast and Orlando. For more information, visit EQFL.org/ProtectTransKids.
