The recent legislation in Florida that prohibits teachers from using a name that's not on a child's birth certificate without parental consent is harmful to transgender youth and disables their ability to affirm their identity through the use of a nickname or preferred name. Teachers now need a parent’s signature in order to be able to call students by any name other than the name on their birth certificate in school. The new rule, while blatantly targeted at trans kids, applies to all students, including cis students using common nicknames.
The new guidelines also require that teachers refer to students using the pronouns that correspond to their biological sex at birth. This can be problematic and alienate transgender students at schools even further. As if that wasn’t enough, the legislation puts more pressure on students to refer to their parents for approval which is worrisome for trans youth who may not have a good relationship with their parents or guardians. This legislation also reverses the measures that may have made schools a safe place for trans students to express their identities.
In addition to the strict “no nickname” policy, schools are enforcing the rule that trans students must use “single stall” restrooms that they will be given. They are also banned from entering any group facilities/activities that don’t align with their biological sex. Penalties can be provided for failing to comply with those rules. Penalties are also provided for teachers and administration who fail to comply with the strict policies ensuring that students aren’t capable of expressing any gender identity outside of their assigned sex at birth.
Some district officials told teachers one way to avoid the issue — along with the related matter of personal pronouns and titles — would be to call students by their last names. They also noted that no one could be required to call a transgender student by different pronouns despite parental authorization of the use of a different name. Critics called the requirement extreme and anti-transgender for how it alienated trans youth in schools.
What republican legislators are failing to see is that this anti-trans motivated legislation could simply apply to a situation where students named Charles and Charlotte both want to go by the nickname “Charlie” which is gender-neutral. The motive behind this language is simply to prevent trans kids from social transitioning at school without parental permission. In doing so, it’s written so broadly as to affect any kid who uses a nickname.
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