Florida politicians talk about protecting kids. They’re really protecting themselves | Opinion

Florida is very, very concerned about kids. You only have to look at the legislation making its way through Tallahassee to know that. Just this week, for example, the state Senate approved the grandly named Protection of Children Act.

Is it an act to help keep children safe from gun violence, the No. 1 killer of kids? Or legislation to make sure kids don’t go hungry? After all, about 23% of children in Florida live in households where there’s not enough food for every family member to lead a healthy life.

Or maybe it’s a law to ensure that children have better access to healthcare, to protect them from the ravages of childhood diseases. Or an act to protect them from online bullying, or one designed to protect their mental health through suicide prevention.

Any of those would make sense.

But no. This is Florida, so that legislation is about drag queens. Not guns. Not hunger. Not suicide or bullying. Drag queens.

The Republicans running the show in Tallahassee these days insist that Florida needs a law on the books to bar kids from attending drag shows with “lewd” performances. The state government, they say, must make sure children don’t witness sexual content at these shows, and that applies even when parents approve.

It’s for the kids, they say. We have to protect the kids.

There’s a lot of other legislation churning through the Legislature in the name of children. Legislation to stop talking about sexual orientation or gender in schools, laws to winnow out objectionable books for students, restrictions how Black history is taught, a proposal to ban the use of preferred pronouns in class — it’s about the kids!

And when we crack down on Disney, it’s not because the company had the temerity to oppose the state’s “Don’t say gay” law. It’s because Disney, as Gov. Ron DeSantis would have us believe, is a purveyor of “woke” ideology that injects inappropriate content into children’s entertainment and must be brought to heel.

Translation: It’s for the kids.

But it’s not. It’s for the adults. Lawmakers, to be specific.

Kids are a smokescreen here, a straw man. This is a political calculus aimed at getting votes — it’s that simple. Republicans have seen that amping up the culture war works. Tapping into simmering grievances or worries pays political dividends, especially when it comes to kids, and even if it continues to damage any chance of real, across-the-aisle discourse.

Republicans saw an opportunity in the concerns of parents, but failed to address cyberbullying, the endless well of internet content, school shooting drills, teen suicide, peer pressure online. It’s no wonder that “parental rights” legislation has taken hold the way it has. Parents have a lot to be worried about.

But we’re not hearing from all parents when we listen to the vocal, well-funded minority who have focused their complaints about “wokeism” in the schools. What about parents who can’t afford to take time off from work to address the local school board?

All these bills that say they are protecting children may make some parents feel heard — and that is, no doubt, satisfying — but that’s a far cry from trying to prevent gun violence or offering mental-health assistance to kids who need it, far tougher issues to address.

No, this kind of legislation allows lawmakers to hide behind the claim that they are helping children when, in fact, they are mostly just helping themselves. With the GOP in full control of Florida’s government, there’s nothing stopping any bad idea from making its way into law as legislators work to give DeSantis an “anti-woke” platform from which to launch his expected bid for the presidency.

Too bad they are using children to do it.

This story was originally published April 13, 2023 at 1:01 PM.